June 4, 2012

Remember that material things don't matter

      “We've got a sort of brainwashing going on in our country. Do you know how they brainwash people? They repeat something over and over. And that's what we do in this country. Owning things is good. More money is good. More property is good. More commercialism is good. More is good. More is good. We repeat it--and have it repeated to us--over and over until nobody bothers to even think otherwise. The average person is so fogged up by all of this, he has no perspective on what's really important anymore.
       Wherever I went in my life, I met people wanting to gobble up something new. Gobble up a new car. Gobble up a new piece of property. Gobble up the latest toy. And then they wanted to tell you about it. 'Guess what I got? Guess what I got?'
       You know how I interpreted that? These were people so hungry for love that they were accepting substitutes. They were embracing material things and expecting a sort of hug back. But it never works. You can't substitute material things for love or for gentleness or for tenderness or for a sense of comradeship.
       Money is not a substitute for tenderness, and power is not a substitute for tenderness. I can tell you, as I'm sitting here dying, when you most need it, neither money nor power will give you the feeling you're looking for, no matter how much of them you have.” 
Tuesdays with Morrie

My thoughts: This one is personal. I'm in college but I'm unsure what to go for. I want to be helpful but social jobs don't pay well. So I'm at a crossroads between choosing a job that pays well or a job that keeps me constantly in the company of people who I can benefit. It's a hard spot to be in because as much as I'd like to say that money doesn't matter- it does. And my family is counting on me. Expectations are high, I cannot let my family down. I realize the opportunities before me and I cannot throw them away. I'm aware of that, but I'm still stuck. This little bit or writing helps me out. Things don't matter as much as people do, that I know for sure. 

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