Tuesday May 8, 2012
People everywhere say it. “Money can’t buy happiness.”
I say, “Yeah, right.”
Whenever David or I get the “I wishes” or “oh what ifs” about something, he is always the one yanking us back to reality. I’m pretty sure he thinks he is more of an authority on this than I am. After all, he works for people who are exponentially richer than we are. While we live a comfortable, presumably average American life, he has done work for people who live in 20,000 square foot houses that include things like a bricked garage and remote-controlled fireplace (so you can start the fire to enjoy as you drive in, I guess. I can’t imagine they hang out in their parked cars just to stare at that particular fireplace.). They opt between taking their own private jet from a small airport to a large one or hiring a limo when jetting off to Europe. Heated pools. Enormous spa-like bathrooms. Closets that look more like actual rooms than closets. A sound system for one media room that cost as much as the framing package for our entire house.
David insists they are not happier than we are. They worry about safety. They are super careful about who is on their property and even more so about who does work for them. They work hard to maintain the image they’ve created. I don’t blame them for stressing. And I don’t even want to be that rich. Well, actually, yes I do. I’d go buy a third world country and remodel all the orphanages in the world and hire wonderful nannies and rescue all the girls caught up in sex trafficking and buy my way through all the adoptions tangled in bureaucracy.
But I’m not talking about SUPER RICH. I’m just talking about comfortably rich. Like the eat avocados every day, buy new clothes for the boys at Crazy Eight instead of spending all that time searching Goodwill, order pizza in at least occasionally, have no house mortgage kind of rich. And I insist that people in that stage are happier and less stressed than those who are struggling to make ends meet or living in poverty.
Case in point, one Saturday I went to Whole Foods to pick up a few items for Liam. Town was absolutely packed with everyone preparing for the Super Bowl. I found my items and wavered between the looooooooooooong express lane and the line up of two customers with full carts in the regular checkout and opted for the latter. Ahead of me was a youngish older couple (meaning late sixties, not eighties). The cashier greeted her pleasantly, bagged her produce, and, as she began scanning the four bottles of wine, reminded her that if she gets six it’s considered a case and she gets a discount. So in spite of the crazy busy lines, the lady goes back to choose two more bottles of wine while the cashier finished scanning everything else and carefully (note: carefully) placing it in bags. When the lady got back she handed them to be scanned but the cashier had already taken care of it and they were ready to pay. The cashier then graciously thanked them for shopping and wished them a nice day. She calmly turned to me, smiled genuinely and repeated all the nice sentiments minus the wine since I didn’t buy any. “Oh, and just so you know, we do have an express lane,” she said, noticing my three items. “The line looks really long, but it does move super fast because it’s one line for several cashiers.” True enough. I hadn’t noticed that. She got a little bag of ice and placed it with the yogurt to keep it cool and I left, not minding the crazy rush at all.
I cannot visit Whole Foods without noticing the way shopping carts are loaded with fruits and vegetables, super fresh meat selections, fine cheeses, organic coffee, yogurt without all the added coloring and whole grain pastas. I look at the people who are shopping and, while they run the gamut of nature loving to preppy, their skin looks healthy. Their eyes are vibrant. They look engaged. There is an equal variety of body shapes and sizes, but I don’t recall seeing anyone who is morbidly obese.
Unfortunately, I cannot afford to get all my groceries at Whole Foods. And unfortunately, I often choose Walmart because it is the grocer closest to my house. On a super crazy day, it looks more like this. Lines with five loaded carts to wait behind. Stoic cashiers and weary looking customers. Moms snapping at children. Carts piled with five frozen pizzas, two packs of hot pockets, three 12 packs of sodas, four boxes of cereal, two extra large bags of chips, and one bunch of bananas. While people run the gamut from downright slovenly to business dress, the overall feel is different. There are more pimples and fewer smiles. More eyes that look vacant. When it was my turn, I placed my items on the moving belt. The cashier never looked my way or acknowledged my presence in any way. She just kept mechanically grabbing items, scanning the bar code, and putting them in bags. I swiped my card, said, “credit please,” and she finished the transaction as I loaded my bags back into the cart. “Have a nice day,” I said, and finally I heard her voice. “You, too.”
I know money isn’t the only factor here … obviously there is a completely different set of job training skills and expectations happening here. Neither am I insinuating that everyone who shops at Walmart is stressed and poor. But how much does money … or the lack of it factor in to someone’s stress level? If it is true that giving little surprise gifts to your spouse for no particular reason builds your marriage, is it then also true that not being able to do that can put a strain on your marriage? What about the couple who takes a weekend away every two months just to spend time together, rejuvenate, talk about current issues in their marriage or family and set goals for the future versus the couple who can’t afford a night out more than once every couple of years? Or on that day when your day goes backward instead of forward … if it is true that you feel a huge sense of relief when your husband offers to pick up chinese takeout, is it not fair to think that someone who can’t do that is going to be that much more exhausted? If it is true that burning a candle on a rainy day helps to lift your spirits, is it not also true that having to leave candle on your list because there wasn’t enough money left that month just negated that? If it is true that being in a beautiful environment ….. gorgeous architecture, huge trees, manicured landscape, vibrant flowers …. is restful and rejuvenating, is it not true that living in a poverty and trash-ridden area would do the opposite?
There are always exceptions to everything, but on average is it fair to say that people with less money tend to eat fewer healthy foods, have fewer stress-busting resources, and live with a greater level of stress knowing that they are always only a few steps away from desperation?
Why then do we say that money can’t buy happiness?
Do you agree or disagree with the statement, “Money can’t buy happiness?” If you’ve lived with different levels of resources for whatever reason … job change, debt load or debt payoff, emergencies, or economic crisis for whatever reason ….. how do you think money or the lack of it played into your stress level?
Have you ever had to give up something you always thought was “basic need” and now you consider it a “splurge” item? Did it have a negative effect on you or make you more grateful?
I tried to comment on this yesterday but it disappeared! Basically I remember being dirt poor and being very happy because we were where we knew God wanted us. Now we have more $ and more things going on to stress about. Not that we’re not just as happy though! So, I think our relationship with God is the deciding factor. I certainly agree about the different people and quality of treatment from store to store! 🙂 And I do think we could eat much healthier if I had lots and lots of $ and maybe a lot of land to grow things on and have chickens and stuff. 🙂
I remember a conversation I had with a friend once where she told me that being poor is super stressful and that she can understand why people just kind of give up on their appearance or whatever because it takes everything in them just to survive when they are poor. I have thought of that conversation many times. You bring up a lot of good points and good questions in your post. One thing I have to think about is that I think probably everyone reading your blog is RICH by comparison to the rest of the world, at least according to statistics I heard when we went to that Generosity Conference. I don’t know how that idea factors in to what you wrote about?
I would not say that Jeremy and I have ever been poor, but we have gone through times where money was tighter and where we had to watch what we spent. I know this…being super careful with money and being on a budget makes me grouchy and I don’t like a lack of money to have to influence every little decision, like, for instance, whether my husband would bring home supper. But that’s real life. Don’t have a lot of answers, but I am curious to see what others have to say. Interesting subject! And yes, I would agree with the statement that “Money cannot buy happiness” (based upon how many rich people are not happy!) but I also get where you are coming from.
Hmm, this is an interesting topic and since I get to be the first to comment, anything goes, right?
I totally get your point that it does SEEM like money does buy happiness.
I can’t help but remember back to when we first got married. We came home from our honeymoon with $500 in our bank account and the first payment made on our old trailer. We lived on love and not much else. And while we have wonderful memories from that stage of our life, and were genuinely happy, we have often said that to live the way we did then for a long period of time would be tough. But I love to spend money, (ouch!) and if you do without for a long time, eventually it becomes very frustrating. You know when not only the grocery budget is limited, but you don’t have money to buy underwear or kleenex or birthday cards. It eventually can suck the life out of you.
As our children get older, there are certain food items that I do not buy like I used to. Part of that is because 1 box of hot pockets won’t even be a meal here anymore, but the other reason is because I’m old-fashioned in that ‘homemade is healthier’.
If you want a real answer however, visit a third world country, and see the genuine smiles on those poor people’s faces. We could all do well to live with a lot less.
This is very interesting to think about. The happiest person I know was incredibly poor, but he believed with his entire being that the only thing he needed to worry about was being a wonderful person, and God would take care of the details. He was amazing and joyful and kind.
But…. I think we have a culture of downward spiral for the poor in this country. The opportunities to get out of that cycle are few and far between. And if you have health problems, or a child with health problems, and you’re living in poverty…. I can’t imagine how frustrating and heartbreaking that would be. I have a hard time thinking that people who don’t have nutritious food, a place to live, healthcare, etc., would have as easy a time being happy.
To some degree though, I think it is cultural. Americans tend to live a very compartmentalized life; work, family, chores and education are each their own separate thing that must be scheduled. Seems likely that it is probably extra-stressful to do things that way.
i thought so much about this post yesterday. came back to comment late last night and it wasn’t here. i am glad it reappeared! 🙂
’cause i am very qualified to offer my opinion. 🙂
i think a comfortable cushion of $$ makes a huge difference in stress and superficial happiness levels. i am DETERMINED it will have nothing to do with the *JOY* i possess.
@mlt10202002 – Thank you thank you thank you! I think you nailed what I was trying to process inside my brain for the last two months while this post simmered in private and that I could NOT get to the bottom of, even when I wrote. Shucks. Should have known you could do that in less than 40 words. 😉
Interesting writing and comments…. Money can make you happy but it will probably be a short lived happiness also. I like Lisa’s thought, I need to have the Joy, whether I have the money or not.
I would just like a garage, never mind the fireplace in it. 🙂
this is so interesting… jeff and i have talked about this…and we come to that same conclusion, that money can certainly take a lot of stress out of your life. but on the other hand, those kids that get EVERYthing they want? well, who wants to be around them? 🙂
The cushion IS nice. Coming from backgrounds where it was pinch because you have to and pinch because you’re a penny pincher, having a cushion means, we are probably still a little dizzy with freedom. But when I go to order a graduation cake for my sister and can spend the extra $$ to make it like she wants, I’m pretty happy.
I tell myself our children are fairly balanced because while they certainly have more than their parents put together had, they don’t have everything their peers have.
It’s no fun being church mice who are always on the receiving end.
i am still incredibly puzzled by the fireplace in the garage…i guess people just get different kinds of ideas about things. i would definately want to do the things you mentioned with so much money available to me if i had it.
i am not sure if i agree or disagree with the statement about money = happiness, because i think it is the choice of the person whether they will be happy with what they have and whether happiness comes from using it wisely. one of the strangest comparisons i’ve ever seen was when i was in NYC. i have never in my life seen such miserable and unhappy (And even crying) people as i think i witnessed in Manhatten (on broadway) and then when i was in the Bronx (in some of the low income parts) i saw families laughing and smiling together, i saw joy on faces…not everyone but it seemed to me that perhaps there might be a bit more contentment (or perhaps that was just a facade) but i really made me thinka bout my assumptions about rich having it all together and the poor not so much. all that to say..thank you for your post.
To be happy isn’t the goal of life.
This is really thought provoking, Michelle. I just read it aloud to Dan. He’s saying that the things (happiness) you listed that money buys can have alternatives. Like if you can’t afford to get takeout your husband can come home and grill burgers if your day has gone badly. And just because you have a low income doesn’t mean that you have to live in a slovenly place. But we sure get what you’re saying here!! And I think we live in a community where everyone is more on the same level and we don’t have as many slum type of areas where you WOULD have to look at trash all around you if you couldn’t afford better.
I have never experienced great poverty or great riches. I do know that the income tax we were socked with because of an extra high income year last year was frightening and stressful. Because the money was all invested and gone…and then there was this huge tax to pay. I really want to be a content person in whatever state I’m in.
First, I think this is a solid essay. Thanks for sharing it.
Gabriel and I have talked a lot about how, while money isn’t everything, it IS something, and it relieves a lot of stress not to have to worry about it. We thought about this especially in the face of health issues that would have meant significant bills had we not lived in a country that provided public healthcare. We’ve experienced the opposite, too: lack of income (student loans for four years?) is a recipe for marital and mental stress.
My uncle has said, “People say a $1,000,000 doesn’t make you happy, but I’d sure like to try it!”
I agree with that statement & TOTALLY understand your post here. I like to think that I would also do GOOD & noble things with that money, but we all know people who become rich overnight. What do they spend their money on? Usually not missions. But I think the key is that God knows what we need. He’s teaching us through the tough times as much as the more plentiful times. Great post!
So intrigued by all this. A couple thoughts I had while reading this. . . I would venture a guesss that the “happy” whole food people had something more then the money contributing to their happiness – stability maybe? purpose in life? good relationships?
And the line about living in a “beautiful environemnt” vs. a “povererty trash-ridden” place. . . my goodness I could write a book about that. See, I live in the latter. Not extreme poverty but probably considered the poverty level according to some. And sometimes I do get tired of seeing sidewalks and trash and over-grown, uncarered for little bits of greeen lots. And sometimes I get very frustrated when wakened at 2:00am cause the bar just left out and people are out-of-control. And sometimes I get weary of hearing the trash talk and kids getting yelled at. But my physical environment is more then first meets the eye. My environment includes some very nice neighbors that I enjoy talking to. My environment includes the Christian friends I choose to surround myself with. But I have to agree, there is something so refreshing about driving out to the suburbs, eating at a restaurant surrounded by calm & clean – seeing large families, including the older generation (grandparents), eating and enjoying each others pleasant company.
Would I be happy living on that well-manicured, gorgeous gazillion acre lot in the country? Maybe, but I think ONLY if I were surrounded by good relationships. See, relationships, are what make me most happy in life. All the extra cash and gorgeous-ness and stability mean nothing If I don’t have good relationships.
So in answer to your question – the person stapped with debt is most likely gonna be a lot more stressed then the person who is debt free even if he himself doesnt’ have a lot of extra cash. But I think there are way too many other factors involved attributing to happiness to say that it’s money that buys happiness.
Just my thoughts and opinions. Love hearing everyones perspectives.
Well first of all I love this post, the boy quotes are little treasures. I love things say and ask. And i will say that I to believe that $$ never = happiness, but i do believe at the same time that it can and does make life a bit more easy. But it really does come down to what we make out of what we have here and now.
Growing up my parents didn’t have much money. We shopped at goodwill’s etc but ate really healthy-not organic but fresh fruit and veggies, no processed food, sugar etc. (side note: I’d never had a freezer meal from the store or mac and cheese until I started babysitting :o) In some ways money can definitely have a impact on the stress level especially if you don’t leave it with God. I think being ‘secure’ takes away the fact you have to trust God so much to provide and seeing Him work-at least I know it does in my own life.
I think this is SUCH a good post. Just because money is not EVERYTHING, doesn’t make it NOTHING. MY sister works with people who make $30 million a year, and she says the are not any happier than she is, making $40 thousand a year. TIMES magazine did a survey that said the ideal income is $75,000 per year. Less than that, people worry about having enough. More than that, they worry about being scammed, etc.
Aaron has been so good for me, teaching me the peace that comes with living well below your earnings, even if the level is lower than you would choose.
I agree with what you have to say!
This made me realize how much I think that I believe that “money can’t buy happiness” but can I can I back that up in the way I live? Could I defend the idea beyond giving easy, but unrealistic answers?
The vibrant, healthy people described at Whole Foods made me think–that is what we were created to be. God didn’t create Adam and Eve sickly and broken and sad. He’s allowed brokenness to enter our world but I do believe He is the master of redeeming any kind of ugliness.
One of my friends describes the happiest person she knows this way: Jamaican mom with crippled husband living in the slums and in the shadow of daily gang gun fights, eking out a living by washing and ironing for other people. And yet when they came to visit her there was joy oozing out of every pore and an eagerness to share the little she had. When my husband was in school the times I remember feeling truly free and happy was when God had pried away my fingers of control and I just believed He would meet our needs and as I watched Him do that in the most surprising ways, there is no way to describe the LOVE I felt for my God in those times. And yet, I always came back to “but I want to give back, I don’t always want to be the taker.”
So the Jamaican lady gives her little bit, the rich woman uses her money to save lots of starving children, both of them are giving what they have. Maybe its more about the love of money, things, comfort, anything that draws me away from complete love for God keeps me from being who He really wants me to be. Maybe true joy is when God is seen in me and not my own fallen image of who I would like to be.
Proverbs 30: 8,9. Not having enough to pay all your bills is definitely stressfull, but I doubt money =happiness.
i’ve started writing out a comment twice now. then backspaced and deleted. there’s so many thoughts i’d love to get out.. but can’t seem to find the right words. i’ve so often said to shayne that i want to learn to be content with what we have. with what we make. to live within our means. and be grateful~ i get that we have way more than the majority of the world. really i do. but. at the end of the day money makes the world go round. and yes. if you have it then i’m not sure it makes you “happier” per say — but it does relieve a HUGE amount of stress, and that in and of itself is something that causes MUCH happiness!!! 🙂
for me. i’ll never understand why some struggle more w/ money than others. i’ve heard ppl say that nothing tries our faith and deepens us to depend on God like financial pressure. well.. don’t ALL christians need their faith deepened like that then?! 😉
loved this post michelle! loved that you just put it out there~
@mlt10202002 – exactly!
Did you ever notice often the people that say money can’t buy happiness are the ones who have plenty of $$? So maybe it cannot buy happiness, but the lack of it sure isn’t a happy scene either. I think to have a lack of $$ would be a totally different scene if there was no debt load, mortgage was paid off, and no car to run/maintain. That just all takes money!! I have been at different places in life… My dad has plenty of $$ and we were happy, just saying! We have been through various stages in our marriage, but the times the $$ were the scarcest were the stressful times in our marriage. Anyway, good post! And Lisa @mlt10202002 – yes! agreed!
I like enough money to be comfortable, but don’t need it for my happiness. 🙂 I often have to think of the words of Paul, about being content ‘in whatsoever state I am.’ Money can’t buy contentment, peace, joy, love, etc. but it can help to create an environment that makes it easier perhaps to feel that. I’m thinking of a temperature controlled house, a beautiful flowerbed, a nicely mowed yard, etc. We don’t like to shiver in a cold house or sweat buckets in a hot one. And I like looking outdoors and not see weeds where the snakes can hide out.
Since becoming more concerned about eating healthy, I’ve also noticed people and what is in their shopping carts much more then I used to. On one of my last grocery store trips, I noticed this extremely over-weight mom. She had two young children and a man (I assume her husband) with her. He was also somewhat over-weight. In the bottom of their cart were 3 packages of sodas. In the cart, a lot of premade ‘foods’. Another single man I noticed in the same store was getting a few bags of chips and stacks of frozen dinners.i looked in my basket, which contained mostly fresh or frozen veggies, frozen fish, dried beans, and some baking supplies. Guess it would make a difference if you work all day and don’t have time to cook food. But in my book, if you have money to spend on sodas and snacks, why not trade those for some fresh foods?
Oh, don’t let my husband into a Whole Foods store. He could spend hours in there! Our closes one seems to be two hours away so we can’t go often. But it would probably be our main store if it were closer.
whoa michelle! whoa as in…i love this post. your thoughts. questions. and reading the comments too.
lots in my head about this. but not in sentences. just swirls. 🙂 partly because my kids are almost home and i feel cramped with time allottment at the moment…
So glad that you wrote this. I think it can be a controversial subject but I agree with you that not struggling with finances can make a life so much more enjoyable. As a child we never had an abundance of money and I don’t know that we as children suffered too badly but I’m sure it was stressful for my parents. Through out our marriage we have also had times for richer and for poorer. And I KNOW that having money to pay the bills and buy groceries makes for a happier life than wondering where the money will come from to pay this or that. So many times money is out of our control, and yet we NEED it to live, so we stress, and wonder, when really, it is out of our hands. When work gets slow and hours are cut, or the breadwinner is sick and can’t work, there are no easy ways to magically poof! make that income drop inconsequential. Rent/mortgages still need to be paid, we still need to eat, etc. etc. And once you start to fall behind it can be excruciatingly difficult to get back on solid ground. Medical bills especially can totally destroy a family’s financial stability and it’s not really something you can blame on anything and say ‘well, they should have done this or this different.’
Your comparison of Whole Foods and Walmart is fascinating. I’ve never been to Whole Foods, don’t think there is one in the area. I think an important difference between the customers at the two stores is that of ‘choice’. Those who shop at Whole Foods are making a conscious choice to shop at a place that provides better food, better service, and probably a better working environment for their employees. They do this BECAUSE THEY CAN. Walmart customers are shopping there because it’s cheap, or because they don’t care about better food, services, etc.
I could go on forever, it was such a provocative, thoughtful post. Thank you, thank you!
so interesting…. i don’t believe money makes you happy, but i do know that as a rule from just personal experience is that people that HAVE money don’t think about it, talk about it, stress about it like people who don’t :). When things are really tight money is on my mind considerably more then when things are easier. I don’t like having it on my mind!
I wonder what I would do though if the mortgage and car loan would be paid off. Would I be consumed by “saving” or consumed by the things I want and possibly could afford. Somehow the focus of paying off debt just puts a lot into perspective. Frankly, we live from pay check to pay check and sometimes the cc covers and sometimes the paycheck holds out. BUT Gerald is so generous in giving us lots of extras like a day trip or overnight trip or meals out to celebrate or trips to see family or whatever. So no, we haven’t quit something in order to make it through which is why we live from pay check to pay check but I think for the two of us, it eases the stress of it. Interesting post and comments!
Interesting post! I have heard it said that ‘money isn’t everything, but it sure is hard to do without’. It sure doesn’t hurt me/us to not have lots of money to spend on wants. And I realize that we ARE blessed with way more than lots of people. I’ve wondered how it would be to not have to worry about spending too much, or if you see something you want just get it, whenever. 😉 I doubt that would be healthy for me. (although it would be fun to have a million to spend sometime 😉 ) I think the nail was hit on the head when they said that are JOY needs to be in whatever situation we are in. and not depend on lack of $$.
Okay here’s something I’ve thought of:
I always read “Money can’t buy happiness” as saying, “Money can’t buy any happiness.” I think some people may have interpreted this post as saying, “Money can buy all happiness.” I think what you were thinking…or at least what I am thinking when i say money helps with happiness is that “Money can buy a measure of happiness.” Replace money with: my spouse, my child, free time, my hobby, music….can any of those in abundance bring me enough happiness to make me happy? No. Can any of those bring me happiness in big and small ways? Yes. Is my happiness dependent on them? No. [Joy? For sure not, just wanted to clarify.] But seriously, when someone gives me a money gift and…say Steve and I can go out for a meal. Does that make me happy? OF COuRse! But is that enough to make me naturally be happy? Of course not. I guess money can give me a little burst of happiness like…um a sparkle in a raindrop, but it doesn’t make me a happy person–that’s up to me.
I’ve got to say, Michelle, I have often thought the same thing. To have enough money that an appliance break-down or car repair is not a crisis — surely that would be happiness! I could identify with everything you said! Then I read and thought some more, and I remembered our latest “crisis” here. We face a potential 100% loss of an investment, plus paying back a portion of those funds that we had fairly withdrawn and used. This is on top of a replaced water-pump, a daughter’s broken arm, a vacuum cleaner that falls apart, a range that half-works and an oven that works not at all, and an urgent need for a car. Not to mention the dozens of other less-urgent and fun things we would love to do if we just had more money! But, as I was saying, when the letter came in the mail that informed us of the payment they want us to send in, in addition to not recovering any of the lost investment, I had to think: Am I trusting in God, or in money? If I truly believe God is loving, all-powerful and all-knowing, then I can fully trust Him for our urgent needs even when I might not see any way through! And so I try to remind myself often — trust GOD, not money.
It is hard to do. I’m learning. Money may buy happiness, but it cannot buy my trust in God.
I’ve got to say, Michelle, I have often thought the same thing. To have enough money that an appliance break-down or car repair is not a crisis — surely that would be happiness! I could identify with everything you said! Then I read and thought some more, and I remembered our latest “crisis” here. We face a potential 100% loss of an investment, plus paying back a portion of those funds that we had fairly withdrawn and used. This is on top of a replaced water-pump, a daughter’s broken arm, a vacuum cleaner that falls apart, a range that half-works and an oven that works not at all, and an urgent need for a car. Not to mention the dozens of other less-urgent and fun things we would love to do if we just had more money! But, as I was saying, when the letter came in the mail that informed us of the payment they want us to send in, in addition to not recovering any of the lost investment, I had to think: Am I trusting in God, or in money? If I truly believe God is loving, all-powerful and all-knowing, then I can fully trust Him for our urgent needs even when I might not see any way through? And I remind myself often — trust GOD, not money.
It is hard to do. I’m learning. Money may buy happiness, but it cannot buy my trust in God.
It seems odd to me that there are lots and lots of stories and songs that speak of women who have EVERYTHING money can buy…………. except their husbands love. and they are LEAVING!
If money DOES indeed buy happiness then by definition you are saying that it is possible to be happy in life with only the things money can buy. Which would mean you are willing to do without: Love, family, friends, health, sunshine, integrity, relationships………. and I am just getting started! Money does not buy happiness. I personally know people who lack one or more of the above and would gladly trade EVERY DOLLAR they have (or ever hope to have) for it. Happiness comes from God. we have so many things that we take for granted that are just gifts from God, plain and simple. And in our discontent we think that if only we had the money to “fill in the gaps” THEN we would be happy. Taking for granted all the things money can never buy………………..
I am sure you have a great fan following out there.
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