Wealth Isn’t Always In The Form Of Money and Materialistic Things
A little reminder to be grateful every day
I am always wondering if wealth is only about money and any materialistic things we buy and own.
I agree that wealth is something associated with numbers that help us make a great living, such as having a high salary or a successful business.
But what if that’s not always the case? What if there’s another form of wealth we didn’t realize it’s there all the time?
We tend to associate wealth with a huge sum of money or stocks or how many properties or luxury cars or jewelry we got today. What a nice life if we could have all of those.
To be honest, I want to get rich too someday and live the rest of my life like a king on a private boat party.
Getting high passive income from one of my businesses. Traveling around the world with our loved ones. Free from any kind of obligations or work and have fun until the day we die.
We all are chasing it. I, just like you who are reading this, crave an easy and pleasurable life.
However, not everyone could get the same privilege of life as I said above. The road to getting in the position of Warren Buffet or Jeff Bezos or any crazy rich people out there is also a long, tiring series of journeys.
So how can we enjoy and have more pleasure in life when we don’t even have that “kind of wealth”? Don’t you see that we all need money to buy things and become happy and live a meaningful life?
Of course, I understand we all need money, it’s a vital part of our life, but what I’m trying to point out is that you can always get the pleasure and happiness of life without having to accumulate so much wealth.
The way to enjoy life in your not-so-good condition right now is by setting an ideal life and wealth based on the balance of reality.
If you think your corporate job is frustrating, remember that there are hundreds of millions of unemployed people, sitting and waiting only to receive news about whether the job applications they have sent are accepted or not.
If you feel that working in a building is not fun and boring, remember that below your building there is a group of sewer workers performing their duty amid stink dirt and grimy animals to make the sewer function as it should.
When you receive a small amount of annual salary and brag about it, think of the unfortunate people who have to seek food from other people’s mercy or wait to get food in line at a social charity event.
I’m not telling you to stop pursuing your dream and make your life better than before, but it’s more of a reminder that all wealth you have seen on social media, that elite lifestyle, doesn’t merely revolve around materialistic things.
Wealth can be in another form. It is. And I have a unique view of my own understanding of wealth that actually can save us from the trap of “popular wealth conception” that haunts us if we don’t chase it.
Here is I’ll show you why wealth isn’t always in the form of money and materialistic things:
- Being in a healthy condition is wealth (there is someone who has a severe disease and uses all of his wealth to pay all the pricey medical bills or at worst can’t pay any medical bills and is left to die).
- Being in a peaceful society and prosperous country is a wealth (Some (or most) African children even can’t get proper nutrition for their bodies and now there is a real war out there! Imagine living in Africa and in one of those countries that were destroyed by war).
- Still having your whole family together after the Covid-19 spread is wealth (the pandemic has made millions of pure souls gone which means some families lost at least 1 or 2 members in their family).
- Sleeping in a bed at home is a wealth (many homeless people sleep in the street, especially on a sidewalk, equipped only with a single layer of sweater or blanket or at worst sleep with a piece of cardboard).
- Having a chance to live until this day to see the beauty of the world is wealth (when you die, it means you can’t see, smell, feel, taste, and hear anymore).
- Having two hands, two eyes, two legs or complete body organs is a wealth (see a man or woman with a handicap? They need the assistance of a medical tool to walk or see or hear, yet they are usually more grateful and content and successful with life rather than one who has complete body organs).
My version of wealth is based on the preciousness of life. Things that can’t be substituted or replaced at all costs. Things that are overlooked and considered regular or basic, therefore, give more meaning and impact to our overall life if we appreciate and are grateful for them every single moment.
Bear in mind that this article doesn’t mean to discourage you from stepping up your living conditions. We all wish for and prefer a finer situation in life. But consider what position you’re in right now.
After you realize your position and end up disappointed because you can’t achieve that “kind of wealth” you longing for, stop for a moment and be grateful for what you have had.
Don’t be disappointed and tell the world is a cruel, unfair place to live by you or humans who had the same fate as you.
It’s just that we humans are less grateful and complain a lot.
So the last question I want to ask you guys is:
Have you been grateful today?
