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How many do you actually know to make the statement?
I don't have to know any.. You can read about their mental health struggles and addictions online...Britney Spears, Aaron Carter, Amy Whinehouse, Amanda Bynes, Winona Ryder.... These are just a few..
I don't have to know any.. You can read about their mental health struggles and addictions online...Britney Spears, Aaron Carter, Amy Whinehouse, Amanda Bynes, Winona Ryder.... These are just a few..
For every one of them are dozens who are just fine. And you wouldn't ever know about the mental health struggles and addictions of most of your neighbors, friends, and perhaps even relatives because it isn't plastered all over the internet.
Yes and no. It also depends how you define happiness.
I’ve been working in a long-term care centre for a long, long time. I’ve seen rich and poor people and those were/are in the middle.
There was this man who had a forest business. I learned from a SW that he had a lot of money in the bank. But he was not happy at all; actually very bitter. He told us that he gave his three sons a lot of money to open business of their own, and especially he gave and lent three million dollars to his eldest son, and he never returned the money. All of them never visited him the whole time when he was alive. They were too busy. Only when he passed away, all three showed up.
Another man who was a very successful business man, who had three daughters who were doctor, lawyer and university professor. Two of them were against one. And when they came to visit him, they always tried very hard to push him to write a will. He was very upset because he did not know which daughter he could trust.
There was this lady who was very poor. She had only one son. The son rarely came to visit her. Whenever he came to visit, he always asked for money to buy booze or cigarettes. One time, we heard he was yelling at his mother: “You have money from the government. Why can’t you give me only five dollars?” The nurse came and told him to leave immediately, or she would call the police. He stood up and ran away through the hallway and jumped over the fence very fast. That was so weird.
There were others who were not so rich or poor, but their children came to visit often and brought their children, pets, cookies, flowers, cards or pictures and sat and talked with them. Those elderly people did not have tons of money, and maybe they did not have big houses, expensive materials, insurance of this and that, and they did not have good health, but what they had was real love from their children and relatives. To me, that was/is the real and best happiness.
Anyway, people can define happiness whatever way they want. But there’s no warranty that the more money they have, the more happiness they can buy. It’s just luck or fate.
Sometimes, you have lots of money, big house and everything today; tomorrow, everything is gone. Or if or when your health goes downhill rapidly, no matter you have the best insurance to provide you all the care services, and when you are in pains, or being bedridden, there’s no happiness at all.
Sometimes, you treat your children, relatives, friends… the way you think that is good, but they don’t think so, and they turn against you, there’s nothing you can do.
It’s hard to say. Happiness is subjective. And it’s not guaranteed with money that you can buy.
Last edited by AnOrdinaryCitizen; 12-09-2022 at 06:50 PM..
I don't know, I was a lot happier when I couldn't pay off my credit card balance in full and I really had to check my bank account to make sure I had enough money to take a trip.
Granted I was younger, and I had safety nets...
Having a safety net obviates the need for personal funds.
Yes and no. It also depends how you define happiness.
I’ve been working in a long-term care centre for a long, long time. I’ve seen rich and poor people and those were/are in the middle.
There was this man who had a forest business. I learned from a SW that he had a lot of money in the bank. But he was not happy at all; actually very bitter. He told us that he gave his three sons a lot of money to open business of their own, and especially he gave and lent three million dollars to his eldest son, and he never returned the money. All of them never visited him the whole time when he was alive. They were too busy. Only when he passed away, all three showed up.
Another man who was a very successful business man, who had three daughters who were doctor, lawyer and university professor. Two of them were against one. And when they came to visit him, they always tried very hard to push him to write a will. He was very upset because he did not know which daughter he could trust.
There was this lady who was very poor. She had only one son. The son rarely came to visit her. Whenever he came to visit, he always asked for money to buy booze or cigarettes. One time, we heard he was yelling at his mother: “You have money from the government. Why can’t you give me only five dollars?” The nurse came and told him to leave immediately, or she would call the police. He stood up and ran away through the hallway and jumped over the fence very fast. That was so weird.
There were others who were not so rich or poor, but their children came to visit often and brought their children, pets, cookies, flowers, cards or pictures and sat and talked with them. Those elderly people did not have tons of money, and maybe they did not have big houses, expensive materials, insurance of this and that, and they did not have good health, but what they had was real love from their children and relatives. To me, that was/is the real and best happiness.
Anyway, people can define happiness whatever way they want. But there’s no warranty that the more money they have, the more happiness they can buy. It’s just luck or fate.
Sometimes, you have lots of money, big house and everything today; tomorrow, everything is gone. Or if or when your health goes downhill rapidly, no matter you have the best insurance to provide you all the care services, and when you are in pains, or being bedridden, there’s no happiness at all.
Sometimes, you treat your children, relatives, friends… the way you think that is good, but they don’t think so, and they turn against you, there’s nothing you can do.
It’s hard to say. Happiness is subjective. And it’s not guaranteed with money that you can buy.
Great post.
I've actually made attempts to change my life along similar lines and it's pretty obvious to me at this point that money means less to me than most, but ... I haven't gotten much help from the world.
Yes. It buys a comfortable lifestyle, freedom from worry, good healthcare, ability to buy healthy food and live a healthy lifestyle, fun activities, toys for fun (like cars and boats), a good education, safety. It can't buy you love, but it can increase the odds or bring you companionship. There's a point at which more money doesn't bring more happiness, I imagine. (I wouldn't know!)
People are what they make themselves. But money is the thing that gives some of those people their head start. I always wonder what I could have done if I'd just had some extra money in my life. It seems like my life has been nothing except trying to survive and I feel like I've missed so many of the things normal people take for granted.
Have I had some experiences I never would have had otherwise? Yes, but I'd far rather have had the money to do something that would have moved me forward instead of fighting constantly to just keep my head above water. I feel like I've been trying to keep from drowning all my life and then I have to hear people say that getting in a lifeboat doesn't buy happiness.
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