What do you want?

What do you want?
If someone were to ask me what I wanted I could immediately rattle off a list of things from wanting my books to sell, a new couch, a landscaped yard, the lot next door, to a trip to Europe…. Oh, and then I really do like learning at writing retreats. I’d like one of those too. I can think of many things I want but will they bring contentment or will the list never end? Hmmm, I really want to say, yes, they will definitely bring me contentment. Have you seen the new sectionals they have for sale? Luxurious! How could my books selling well not bring contentment? Well…because contentment comes from within not without.

Check out this commercial to see what I mean. Warning: You may need a tissue.

It’s good to have dreams. It’s good to want things if it keeps you motivated and working towards a goal. However, it’s not good to place so much emphasis on wants that you forget about what really brings contentment: love, gratitude, helping others, being happy for others, knowing that even without recognition you’ve made a difference in a life.

When Eric and I travel to cities, I must have a pocket filled with dollar bills because I cannot walk by someone begging for money and not help. Over the years, I’ve gotten a lot of looks like the newspaper stand guy in the video. People think I’m being taken. I will never know. Maybe that money was used for cigarettes or alcohol. Or, maybe that money was used for food. All I know is that someone, a fellow human being, is asking for help. I can and I will because, for me, it’s the right thing to do. I benefit more from the peace I feel knowing I’ve helped someone than I do from the feeling of getting a new couch, refrigerator, or whatever. The older I get the more life becomes more about what kind of difference I can make while I’m here than how much I can accumulate. Never underestimate the power of peace. It doesn’t come in a box, even a really big sectional size one, it comes through friendship, giving, gratitude, and love.