Everything You Need You Have Right Now
What do we need the most, more things or a better attitude?
As a former collector of earthly things, I once believed if only I had more, I would be happier. I errantly believed that more stuff was the answer to the emptiness inside of me. Let me share with you what I found on this journey with the following story.
One of the jobs that I have is liquidating estates. Once a person has grown so old that they can no longer live independently or they just pass away, they are left with a huge pile of stuff. Much of the stuff is rummage sale items at best. A lot of it is just garbage. In the course of 70 or 80 years, a person ends up with a house and garage full of useless things that no longer serve any purpose. Even more interesting is that many of these items were never even taken out of their packages. It is a trap that almost every last one of us falls into. The bottom line is all of this stuff is just stuff. It doesn’t make a sick person well; it doesn’t keep a person from dying. We dispose of it and move on to the next pile of stuff.
I have come to fervently believe that we collect stuff for the wrong reason. We rely upon tangible items to fulfill an unfulfilled heart. It temporarily fills empty space, but then we need more stuff to keep the feeling going. Let us consider an alternative. Rather than collecting stuff, let us collect wonderful experiences. Let us increase our list of kind acts. Let us cultivate personal relationships. Let us collect the “stuff” that transcends time.
True joy is found in knowing that we already have everything that we need. We don’t have everything we want because we will always want more until we make a conscious decision to do something differently. What I need the most is a better attitude, one predicated on kindness and love rather than collecting, attaining and owning. I do this today, so that when my time comes, and I end up on my deathbed, I will leave having all my needs met and the garbage taken out. I can’t think of anything that makes us wealthier. If this makes me crazy, I am going to be crazy until I die, but what a life and death it will be.
Thank you
Jim
James A. Francetich is a freelance writer and author. The opinions expressed are solely of the author and do not represent any community based recovery programs, private or public entities or any governmental agencies.