Making It in America
There are Two Ways
An Old Ladies Deep Thoughts #17
There are two ways to make it in America. One is to be filthy rich. The other is to want less. I’m in the second group. I was never going to be filthy rich, but I’ve never felt envious of the rich either. In fact, I often feel like I still have more than my fair share, even though I’ve concentrated on the second way of making it in America — wanting less.
The secret to a good life is taking the detour.
I’m always looking for a detour around the next mess. And there’s always another mess. If you don’t have clearly defined goals, you’ll get off course, whether you’re hoping to get filthy rich or striving to want less. I’ve been distracted before, but in the end, I managed to return to my original goal: to want less.
I’ve written about materialism many times.
It’s a theme that is prevalent in America. In fact, consumerism is the main thing that defines American culture: buy, buy, buy. And with the relentless buying comes debt. We are drowning in debt in the U.S. I’m not referring to the government either. I’m referring to American citizens. Whether they’re living at the poverty level or making $200,000 a year, everyone is spending more than they make.
We’re a cash-poor society.
Oh, the debt may ebb and flow, but there’s a pattern to the way we do things. We get scared by a downturn in the economy and try to start saving, and then, as soon as we’re told things are on the mend, we spend it all again. It’s a way of life dictated by owning as much stuff as possible. Bigger is better, and more is the goal.
But wanting less is highly underrated.
I know all we have for role models are the super wealthy. Our politicians are wealthy. If they stay in politics long enough, they’re going to amass a considerable amount of wealth. Goodness, even our ministers aspire to the mega-church lifestyle. We love the rich. You can be brilliant, but nobody really cares. You can be compassionate, but even fewer will take note. You can be creative, but until you amass a fortune from your creative ideas, you don’t impress the average Joe.
Yet, there’s another way.
There’s a detour that can be taken to avoid the pitfalls of materialism. There’s a way to be satisfied with less. In fact, once you understand the situation, you can fully appreciate that less is more. Freedom is just another word for “nothing left to lose.” I mean that literally. Let’s face it: owning lots of stuff is a burden. You have to earn the money to buy it, then you have to find a place to store it, followed by the energy to maintain it, and finally figure out who to leave it to when you die. If you’re rich enough to hire a staff to manage all of your properties, then you’ve got to oversee their work lest they cheat you.
Two houses are not better than one.
Two cars are not better than one. Bigger houses are not better than smaller ones. Fancy cars are not better than practical ones. A garage full of junk does not make you happy; it just means you can’t park your car in the garage.
It’s an inconvenience.
I’m old and am now keenly aware, on an entirely new level, that life is short and I can’t take any of it with me when I die. I’m beginning to downsize even more. There’s junk accumulating in a few closets that I refuse to leave for my kids to sort through. One afternoon, before long, I’ll sort through it. How it even got there, I don’t know, but it needs to go.
My kids will thank me later.
I’ve done a pretty good job of avoiding the pitfalls of materialism, yet I honestly believe I could’ve done even better. As I finish this article, I realize that there’s a new one already beginning to percolate in the back of my mind. It’s centered around another theme — simplicity.
Stay tuned; I’ll share my thoughts on the virtues of simplicity next time.
Teresa is an author and professional myth buster. You can find her books on Amazon.
