Last Friday, Jeff, Gregory, and I went to the movies. Because the movie we wanted to see was popular, we were only able to get tickets for a show starting about an hour and a half after we arrived. Fortunately the theater was located in an area of "downtown revitalization" so we weren't forced to sit in the theater and stare at movie posters, but could walk through the area, which was filled with restaurants, bars, stores, and commercial enterprises of every sort. We wandered past most, but only ducked into two: Bombay, where we like to browse, and Borders, where we listened to music and perused books. There were other stores of interest - a DSW, for instance - but I refused to let myself go in. The reason: there was nothing I needed. Had I gone in, however, I very likely would have found something I wanted. And then I might have bought it...simply because I wanted it.
A few days after we went to the theater, I was reading the Washington Post and came across an article about the growing popularity of luxury items in homes. Marble countertops, walk-in closets the size of dorm rooms, showers with five showerheads, nine car garages, theater rooms, exotic woods floors, heated toilet seats. The list goes on. The owners of these luxuries were all quoted saying some variation of "I earned it" or "I deserve it." I have to wonder if they truly believe that. And if so, just what they have done to deserve these luxuries.
By American standards, by legal standards, these people have done nothing wrong. They do indeed have the right to build homes as large and as fancy as they want. If we so choose, we can fill walk-in closets with shoes or buy a new dress for every wedding we're invited to. If we can afford it (or are willing to take on the debt), we can have pretty much whatever we want, no questions asked. But perhaps there are some questions we should ask, questions like: Do I have the moral or ethical right to this? When there are people in the world without potable water, do I have the right to luxuriate for 30 minutes in my five showerhead shower? When century old forests are being destroyed and land is at a premium, do I have the right to a five thousand square foot home? When the world's gas supply is dwindling and pollution is rising, do I have the right to drive a car that gets 10 miles per gallon?
Perhaps I'm in the minority, but I think the answer to these questions is "No." Yes, I know that you not buying a pair of shoes isn't directly going to feed a starving child in Africa (or America). And conserving energy in America isn't going to bring reliable electricity to Iraq. But what if we started spending our luxury money on making sure others have necessities? What if we realized that making more money doesn't entitle us to more natural resources? What if we started thinking about how the choices we make affect others? What if we learned to distinguish want from need?
I'll go ahead and be the first to admit that I am selfish, that I stand in the shower for too long, that I don't give enough to others, that I buy things I have no use for, that I lust after beautiful homes. I want. It's hard not to here in America, in a culture where most of our stores are here to fulfill desires, not needs. Where we all, admitted or not, have some desire to keep up with, if not get ahead of, the Joneses. We want people to admire our homes, our cars, our clothes. But we don't really need that, do we?
Aside from the adventure of travel and the wonder of seeing places I've only dreamed of, I think one of my motivations for wanting to do an around the world trip is to force myself to recognize how little I truly need and to acknowledge how much I've been given. Living out of one backpack, I'll hopefully recognize the frivolity of a pair of shoes for every outfit. Experiencing firsthand the poverty in which so much of the world lives, I hope to lose any desire for useless rooms and extravagant trappings. I want to learn to live simply. Not to deprive myself, but to be appreciative of my life and circumstances, of the fragility of fate that let me be born who I am, where I am. I long to be able to differentiate need from want and to choose my wants carefully. To ask only for shelter over my head, food on my table, health, good stories, and laughter...and friends and family with whom to share it.
8 comments:
I agree about the sad direction our culture is moving in... part of the problem is too that most people really can't afford these things and are going increasingly into debt to have them. Everyone knows that resources are limited, but most people just choose to ignore that and keep driving around in their SUVs and leaving all the lights on in their houses. It really wouldn't be difficult to cut back, but we live in a culture of convenience and if it's not convenient people won't do it. Sadly it will probably be future generations that will inherit their parents' debt and figure out what to do with a world that's been stripped of its resources. Most humans are just too lazy and indifferent to deal with problems that don't directly affect their every day lives.
Do not complain about how people are needy and do not care about others. By writing this you are the same way actually worse. You have said that you want to find a job that you really care about and love going to then go help the starved, deprived, dying, etc.for the rest of your life.
First, it's rather spineless to offer criticism but not put your name to it. If you believe what you say, then stand behind it. That's why my name is clearly attached to this blog. I take responsibility for what I write.
Second, a deconstruction of your argument. How exactly is it worse to point out the need of people in our world rather than to ignore it? This is completely nonsensical. Clearly I care at least enough to reflect on the issue, when I could spend my time in many other ways. And I doubt that you have any idea about what I do or do not do to help others in need. As I clearly said, I don't do enough. But I do do something. What do you do? Ye who is without sin, cast the first stone.
Also, if you had read the post clearly, you would realize that the post isn't so much about helping others but about appreciating one's own blessings and learning to live simply, cognizant of what one has been given. I am at least blessed with the ability to recognize my own shortcomings. What about you?
And finally, there are plenty of ways to help the world without becoming Mother Teresa, though if you are called to that, then good for all of us. Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, for example, are doing a lot of good things for the world, but not by giving up their jobs, but rather by using their resources for positive change. We each have to find our own way to give back. That is the point of this post: my efforts to determine how I can best live my life, while at the same time helping others with theirs.
I can't believe some of the comments to your blog. I understood exactly what you were saying. I thought is was written very clearly. Not sure what those 2 who commented were thinking.
so what about blankets for illegal immigrants?
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