So many of us are concerned with acquiring more material possessions or upgrading the current things we own for something seemingly better. All this time and energy spent on something so frivolous and temporary.
Some of us are addicted to the newest, latest and greatest and keep on making the same mistake of thinking that these novel things will somehow fill the void deep inside.
“If only my apartment was bigger. If only my clothes were nicer. If only my car was faster. If only I was able to afford one more vacation every year.”
We constantly distract ourselves, looking for the cure to our boredom. The boredom brought on by the privilege that many of us have become accustomed to. The privilege of not having to suffer or struggle everyday to meet our basic human needs of shelter, safety and satiety.
Materialism is our new religion and our jobs are the churches we attend in order to acquire more. And worst of all, many of us have begun to treat each other the way we treat common household items. As soon as someone is a bit tarnished, as soon as someone nicer is on the horizon, as soon as the novelty has worn off, we move on. We toss each other aside because it is seemingly easier to start anew than to put time and energy into fixing something that has faltered.
And this mistake that we keep making is rooted in the idea that our happiness, our purpose, our peace of mind, is something that we need to look for and find in the external world. It's somewhere out there in the form of a new job or a new relationship or a new religion.
But the reality is that nothing external will bring you the sustained happiness, purpose or peace of mind that you seek. It is only through analysis and introspection that we can escape the socially programmed loops that we find ourselves in. The social loops that are creating the disharmonies we experience.
Did you really decide on being a man, or an American, or a Christian? Did you decide to like a particular sports team or was it your father's favorite team?
How much of yourself can you really take credit for? How much of yourself have you truly challenged?
We all begin as social constructions but we don't need to stay that way. Deconstruct and reassemble yourself.