To Be Happy With What You Have
As I thought about this subject, I came to mind a few words uttered by Saint Augustine: The poor man is not the one who has less, but rather the one who needs more and more to be happy. If we push aside the idea that the meaning of “rich” is a person who has a lot of money, then the categorical confirmation of our title has to do with the happiness that this weekend spoke to us about, centuries ago. Being content with what you have is the key to true peace.
In fact, this happiness comes from places that have very little or nothing to do with the possession of a coin. For what makes us rich is not material, but emotional and physiological.
A world full of disposables
With respect to what we have mentioned above, it is worth noting that we live in a world where we are surrounded by things that can be considered as something we can do without: Advertising and new technologies sometimes make us believe, that everything is about possessing material objects that are capable of making us happier.
“They educate us to become producers and consumers, not to be free people.”
-José Luís Sampedro-
But this is not true: we are no happier than our parents were, even though we may own the latest generation of mobile, two cars and have three computers at home. We may be leading a more comfortable life, but the consumption that gives us these things is not something that really satisfies us as human beings.
When my sister tells me that she needs new clothes, but at the same time has two closets full of clothes to choose from, I wonder how much we are deceived by our needs: We usually add value to things we do not have. We forget what it is we are really missing.
Do I really need it to be able to be happy and content?
What these examples show is how accurate the quote at the beginning of the article is. So much so, in fact, that it seems surprising that it was pronounced in the Middle Ages. But this is happening because we have repeated the idea behind it hundreds of times before: Do I really need this? This is a question we should ask ourselves in many situations.
As we have said, we have so many things that we sometimes forget the things we can not live without: good mental and physical health, the opportunity to have personal relationships that make our lives worth living, including having friends who will always be there for us, and the blessing of having a family.
All this and more, can not be bought with all the gold in the world. This is why, ironically, all of this can make us rich in happiness: No one wants to feel better and happier than someone who overcomes cancer, overcomes a depression, finds the best support in his or her partner that he or she could dream of, or someone receiving a loving hug.
Be content with what you have
We have probably often been frustrated that we did not achieve the goals we had set for ourselves or because we did not get what we really wanted. In fact, we need more and more. At the same time, we are becoming less and less satisfied with what we own.
It is true that it is beneficial to consider some goals that we would like to achieve. For conforming in accordance with what we just have or are is synonymous with stagnation. But at the same time, it is good to keep in mind that happiness comes when we enjoy the process we go through.
Our desires do not bring us happiness, they only adorn it: it is very enriching to learn to feel complete with what you have achieved or what you have been able to give, and to be free to receive whatever comes our way, without asking for anything in return.
In short, as we have mentioned from the beginning, what comes to us for free and without any material value is what can make us rich. Money will make life comfortable for us, but what strikes our emotions is what will give life meaning.
