I began writing about the subject as a result of my daughter and I going on a field trip to our county 4-H last week. All the modern day farmers talking about raising chickens, cows, rabbits, and living off the land made me yearn for a life like that. This is my journey…The truth is that money gives you options. This truth infects all of us. My son who has birthday money, runs around Wal-mart like a tycoon, my kids demand a family vacation when summer hits, and I want to be blogging on the beach. Beach Blogger? It has a nice sound!
So there is no doubting the power of money. It is intoxicating when you have it and frustrating to the point of madness when you don’t. So, what is wrong with money? There is nothing wrong with money – It is the incessant need and desire for it that is the problem.
If we are really honest with ourselves, we believe money gives us a life without worry. Yet we exchange the lack of worry for something much more sinister and that is a lack of satisfaction. When we have money we have so many options that we are no longer satisfied with what would have blown us away before. I have found that to be the case in my own life. Suddenly the Honda Accord (which is a great car) pales in comparison to a BMW. Why? You could say performance and better handling, but the truth is that we want more than we can really afford. We are always pushing the envelope.
This is why I am struggling so deeply with the concept of simplicity. I secretly do not want to be simple because then no one will notice me. My wife and I own a business so there is a certain perception with that. We get the questions like: “Did you guys move?” “I saw your new car! (It’s not new, except to us.)”
The truth is we are dealing with the same issues that every new, small business struggles with. Survival is the word of the day. Perception is everything though. So we continue down the road – choosing the one less traveled and wondering if we made the right choice.
