The best things in life boast the best price tag: free
I like money. Money buys me food, an education, a roof over my head, clothes on my back and even frozen yogurt.
I once had a friend who spent $390 on a pair of designer sunglasses. Unfortunately, they looked absolutely terrible on him, making him look like an extra from “Zoolander.” I couldn’t help picturing him in a gasoline fight with a George Michael song playing in the background.
Although he could barely pay for his books that semester, my friend was happier with his sunglasses purchase than Derek Zoolander himself when they rebuilt his Center For Kids Who Can’t Read Good And Who Want to Learn to Do Other Stuff Good Too.
We spend most of our lives working for money that we spend to secure our wants and needs for both ourselves and our loved ones.
After all, isn’t that why we’re here at the University of Nevada, Reno? To increase the value of our labor?
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you probably already know our country’s economy is going down the crapper, which means less money for everyone. And the bad news, you ask? It’s going to get worse before it gets better.
Personally, I can’t live as comfortably as I once did. Sacrifices have been made by my family and myself all so I can be here in school today.
Of course, it is frustrating, puts strains on my relationships and has even distracted me in class. I’ve cried over money problems before; maybe you have too.
Nevertheless, I have but only two words in response.
So what?
The best things in life are free.
A great conversation, falling in love, laughing until you think you might pee your pants, streaking the quad unsuccessfully and almost having to register as a sex offender the rest of your life all cost the same thing. Zilch.
I still have my health, my friends and family, a functioning government and the access to an education. All these things I am incredibly grateful for.
By those standards alone, I’m better off than 90 percent of the world. That’s over five billion people that have it worse than I do.
I read an article in USA Today the other week about the food shortage in Ethiopia and the over 70,000 malnourished children living there. And the only thing I could think was that I thought I had it bad.
People are starving, governments are being overthrown, countries are being invaded, and bombs are decimating entire neighborhoods, yet I have the brazenness to complain about the price of a gallon of gasoline.
Spending time with my friends and family, seeing what else is going on in the world and truly counting my blessings puts everything into perspective for me. In the end, I’ve found that I have all I need to be content and more.
Besides, I like to believe that the monetary carrot of financial security dangling in front of all of our faces will taste that much sweeter when we as alumni are able to take one giant bite, savoring every last piece of it.
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on Monday, September 1st, 2008 at 10:53 pm and is filed under Perspectives.
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September 3rd, 2008 at 1:15 pm
Wow. You have the wisdom and maturity of a 14-year-old. Congratulations.