the finest gift
did you ever feel that having all you wanted was not enough, that the desire for acquisition was a bottomless pit, a hole in one's life that could never be filled? if so, congratulations! YOU ARE TOTALLY HUMAN!
"having it all" is one of those great existentialist questions....as Oscar Wilde simply put it: there are two tragedies in life, not getting what you want and getting what you want....changing this two-headed tragedy of the human condition is simple...
the problem lies in the fact that we strive after transitory things - stuff...it means that the present economic bubble has literally seduced and bought us all into the notion that conspicuous consumption is a positive good - somewhat like Gordon Gekko's character in the movie "Wall Street" once maintained that "greed is good." people simply spend themselves into oblivion...they literally showered themselves with things, stuff....lavish stuff on loved ones, acquaintances, and even themselves with wild abandon...they played the music and overdanced it, when it's over, everything is over...simply over as in nothing left.
what is called for here is a bit of perspective...especially in this holiday seasons...everyone is trying to beat the blues with great extensive expenditures...i say, you can show love by not overspending...giving is a pleasure...and the greatest gifts are the one you give, not the ones you recieve...the truth of this concept is not knowledge that you are born with it, it is wisdom you learn...the joy of this idea is that, while you cannot control what you are given, you are always in-charge of what you give...the amazing thing about giving is that it becomes a new kind of receiving...one that truly satisfies even the emptiest of hearts...the gifts you give become your eternal treasure
of course, i love receiving gifts...but the superiority of giving over getting, gets more obvious to givers everytime they give...but while holidays and special days are marvelous opportunities to experience the blessing of giving, you are also in control of what you give and look beyond your present situation as to what is the limits the extent of your spending. everything is not always measured by our visa excess card expenditures.
we cannot spend our way into happiness...but we can always achieve well-being through proper perspective...meaning, understanding the real reason for the season...by understanding the reasons why we celebrate christmas and any special time of the year, we come to understand that a person is more than his/her stuff...ultimately, happiness is not found in stuff....rather, the gift of true happiness - in this christmas season and any other season is to be found in purposeful living and in the understanding that the only thing that is real and worthwhile is that which transcends the transitory such as our relationships with others, with people who love and choose to be together, to be a family, friends...and all the rest is window dressing.
the greatest gift you can give to someone is your love, companionship, compassion, respect and understanding of their well being....and if that's all there is, then i say that, that is the finest gift.
