It's interesting, you know. We spend our whole lives working for things. Chasing the so-called "American Dream." Work hard in college to get a degree. Use that degree to make money. Take that money and buy a house/car/clothes/shoes/plane ticket to ______/the newest iPhone. So on and so forth.
And it's not that there's anything wrong with that. It's okay to have things. It's okay to have nice things. Heck, I'm currently in school, getting a degree, to make money, to {hopefully} provide for myself one day. It's okay to want to newest gadgets, or a nice house. I want to be able to shower those I love with gifts, and provide nice things for my future family.
But I think that we've been caught up in this rut where we need constantly need stuff. We need to show others that we care for them so we buy them something. We throw iPhones and iPads at our children, basically saying "entertain yourself." I remember middle school, if you didn't wear Hollister or Abecrombie, you're parents must not love you enough. And yeah, I guess I sorta understand where we've gotten this concept from. We want others to know that we have made a life for ourselves. That we are happy. So, in order to do this, we must show them that we can buy this and that for ourselves, our friends, and our family.
But you know what? Stuff doesn't matter. Can you name one thing you got for Christmas five years ago? Last year? Do you know what matters? Do you know you remember? You remember the experiences. You keep the memories. The things? They don't matter. I could vividly describe a Thanksgiving trip my family took about 8 years ago. We went to the Blue Ridge Mountains with my boy cousins and granddad. Could I tell you what I got for Christmas that year? Absolutely not.
I don't want people to buy things for me. Just hang out with me. Talk to me. Ask me my testimony. Let me hear yours. Let's take a walk or a hike or a swim, Let's get coffee or desert or brunch. Let's talk about our dreams for the future. Let's splurge and take a trip to the Bahamas or the Rocky Mountains or Australia, or heck, even Asheville. Let's find a cool documentary on Netflix to watch. Literally anything. Things are nice. And occasionally, stuff is good. Treat-yo-self. And treat others around you. But what I've mostly always found to be true, is that people would rather have your time than your money or the items you have to offer.
And it's not that there's anything wrong with that. It's okay to have things. It's okay to have nice things. Heck, I'm currently in school, getting a degree, to make money, to {hopefully} provide for myself one day. It's okay to want to newest gadgets, or a nice house. I want to be able to shower those I love with gifts, and provide nice things for my future family.
But I think that we've been caught up in this rut where we need constantly need stuff. We need to show others that we care for them so we buy them something. We throw iPhones and iPads at our children, basically saying "entertain yourself." I remember middle school, if you didn't wear Hollister or Abecrombie, you're parents must not love you enough. And yeah, I guess I sorta understand where we've gotten this concept from. We want others to know that we have made a life for ourselves. That we are happy. So, in order to do this, we must show them that we can buy this and that for ourselves, our friends, and our family.
But you know what? Stuff doesn't matter. Can you name one thing you got for Christmas five years ago? Last year? Do you know what matters? Do you know you remember? You remember the experiences. You keep the memories. The things? They don't matter. I could vividly describe a Thanksgiving trip my family took about 8 years ago. We went to the Blue Ridge Mountains with my boy cousins and granddad. Could I tell you what I got for Christmas that year? Absolutely not.
I don't want people to buy things for me. Just hang out with me. Talk to me. Ask me my testimony. Let me hear yours. Let's take a walk or a hike or a swim, Let's get coffee or desert or brunch. Let's talk about our dreams for the future. Let's splurge and take a trip to the Bahamas or the Rocky Mountains or Australia, or heck, even Asheville. Let's find a cool documentary on Netflix to watch. Literally anything. Things are nice. And occasionally, stuff is good. Treat-yo-self. And treat others around you. But what I've mostly always found to be true, is that people would rather have your time than your money or the items you have to offer.
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