How much ‘stuff’ do we REALLY need in our lives?
I’m aware that people reading blogs come from a wide economic spectrum, and from nearly every country in the world (most nations have some sort of Internet capabilities, I think) — so when I ask a question like the one in the title of this article, I’m sure there are a huge variety of answers.
But it’s worth thinking about, no matter what your situation or where you live: How much “stuff” do we REALLY need in our lives?
I started thinking about this a couple of days ago after watching a DVD of a Denzel Washington movie that came out early this year, or late last year — “Book of Eli.” I won’t give away the nifty plot twists and ending for those of you who haven’t seen it. I would give the movie a qualified recommendation. I say “qualified” because it’s got a lot of very graphic violence, and some of the plot underpinnings seem a bit far fetched to me. But with those qualifications, I really enjoyed watching Denzil Washington act, he’s uniformly great at just about everything I’ve seen him do.
Anyway, the setting of the movie and some of Washington’s dialog started me thinking. It takes place in a “post-apocalyptic” future where people are grubbing around in the very violent, dangerous remains of civilization in America. Throughout the movie, Washington’s character keeps saying things about how thankful he is and we all should be for the basic essentials for life, i.e., food, clean drinking water, shelter, clothing, etc., and that beyond that we are wrong to try to grab more.
That’s an age old theme in fiction of all sorts and pretty much all times and places, debated and argued over long before refrigerators, air conditioners, and other modern furniture or appliances were invented.
How much of our lives are made up of “the abundance of things” (see Luke 12:15) we possess? Do we devote ourselves to acquiring “stuff,” or living our lives?
No more “sermonettes” for today, I promise. But think about it.
Autism rate in America seems astonishingly high to me
I was doing some research trying to understand more about autism, when I came across an article indicating that the National Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now puts the rate of autism nationally at one in 110 children.
The article I read wasn’t exactly clear on what that number really means, but I found it astonishing that one in 110 children are autistic, whether that’s one in 110 newborn or one in 110 developing children, or whatever.
I confess I’m pretty ignorant about autism, but I do realize it covers a wide range of behaviors and wide range of functionality, varied treatment and care needs, the whole ball of wax.
My son dated a girl when he was in high school whose sister was “autistic.” I don’t know exactly what that meant in her case, though I saw it meant she had some attention issues, some “loudness” problems, and some physical awkwardness. I also know she had a good sense of humor and was easily engaged in what was happening around her. Her mom (single parent situation) had worked with her a lot, and had gotten her regular medical and therapeutic help.
But I know, too, that many parents of autistic children face a lifelong struggle to help their children and cover the medical and therapeutic expenses their children need.
Why is the rate of autism so high? I don’t have any idea what it used to be, but what I’ve read indicates it seems to have risen a lot in recent decades. Why is that? Are pregnant women getting adequate prenatal vitamins and nutrition to maximize their health and the health of their babies? Do nutrition and health issues related to the mother and the unborn child even have anything to do with autism?
All of this is in the realm of mystery to me. I certainly hope and pray that medical research and concerned parents will gain a foothold on autism and everything surrounding it for the sake of kids and families everywhere!
Do you do lists? I’ve never been much of a list maker
Do you do lists? I’ve never been much of a list maker myself, other than the occasional grocery list — and my wife generally does that list, because she says I add to many “extras” to it. (Of course, she must realize I have all those extras in my head while browsing the grocery aisles and add ‘em to the cart anyway.)
When it comes to financial decisions, however, I’m slowly learning the value of making “pros” and “cons” lists and brainstorming alternatives on paper as we (my wife and I) discuss our options. In those cases, a list written out in longhand on actual paper seems the most “user friendly” way for me to brainstorm and consider all the alternatives.
If I were considering refinancing my mortgage, I would probably make a list. Homeowner’s insurance? Sure, another list. Changing our auto insurance? I certainly would make a list of car insurance companies. Health insurance (assuming I could ever afford it!) — yup, that would be another list.
A couple of days ago, I decided to look at switching from our current satellite TV provider back to our local cable provider, mostly because of some special offers they were having. Plus, I am weary to death of the so-called “storm fade” that knocks out our television service whenever one of those frequent Missouri thunderstorms comes by.
I called the toll-free number for our cable provider and had an excellent conversation with one of their sales agents. She did very well and had me looking at a scheduling grid online to show me what channels we would get for the package(s) she said would fit our budgetary limitations. I agreed to schedule the installation.
A couple of hours later, after looking more closely at the channels we would NOT be getting, I called back and canceled.
The very next day, a nice young lady from the cable company came by the house with an actual written-down-on-paper list of their various TV packages, exactly what they included, and exactly what our cost would be. That was IMMENSELY easier for me to understand and make a decision.
Well, okay, we still didn’t get the service, but that organized on-paper list for us to hold in our hands and look through got us much closer than scanning through a grid on the computer screen, with no defined service packages, trying to remember exactly what channels we would be getting.
The moral to all this long ramble? Life is fine without lists, but there are times when a good old-fashioned paper list can help immensely when you’re trying to get something done or make a decision.
‘Real Subliminal’ products
