Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash
The world is filled with various forms of wealth. In times of peace and calmness, it is easy to place the value of things in perspective. However, in times of war and economic upheaval, it is not very clear what the best form of wealth is because everything is volatile or unstable.
Stocks are hit by scandals and the unpredictability of fear and greed. Cash is swallowed by inflation. Real estate prices also get caught up in the fray and are affected negatively. Bond values take a hit. Bitcoin and altcoins go into a frenzy. Everything is unclear and everything is confusing! But in the final analysis, the greatest form of wealth has always been the same throughout history –and its pure simplicity is quite astonishing.
Everybody is a millionaire
The strange but unnoticeable thing in life is that we are all millionaires in one way or another. Don’t believe me? Fine… Let me ask you a question. What would you do for a million dollars?
Did you just say …”Anything”??? *Deedee voice* (from Dexter’s Laboratory)
Well okay then. I need you to pluck out both your eyes and give them to me in exchange for a million dollars. In fact, you don’t even have to give them to me. You can give them to any person of your choosing. *blink*blink*
Now on a serious note …Would you do it? Would you trade your eyes? More importantly …Would it be worth it?
Well if you are not an alien with four eyes, the chances are that you are absolutely not giving me your eyes in exchange for a million dollars! In fact, I am willing to bet you wouldn’t give your eyes away even for ten, twenty, or even one hundred million dollars. It’s bad business!
See how rich you are???
I hope you’re now starting to realize and appreciate just how rich you are. And the best part about everything is that the previous example doesn’t just apply to your sight. Your other senses are nearly every bit as valuable as your sight is too.
Photo by Alexander Grey on Unsplash
An Important Life Lesson and Realization
About ten years ago when I was still at uni, I vividly remember listening to an intriguing audio book by Earl Nightingale on my way to class. The depth of his words hit me like a ton of bricks. I’ll never forget them. Please allow me to paraphrase. Nightingale said that in life, the things we buy with money are actually quite cheap and replaceable. But the things we got for free –like our bodies, our minds, our friends, and our family –are actually the truly priceless things because they can never be replaced.
It’s quite true if you think about it. The things we buy with money are indeed somewhat cheap because they are very easily replaceable once you have the money. On the other hand, the things we got for free are extremely invaluable –because we can never replace them if we ever lose them.
Do you agree that you are richer than you realize? If yes, please leave me a comment telling me why you feel that way. Tell me about something valuable that you lost and will never get back. Or tell me about the priceless things that you still have and are thankful for.
If you don’t agree that you are rich, please let me know why you feel that way as well. I will be happy to listen and learn from your perspective.
With that said, see you in the next article where I will be telling you about an important lesson I learned …from the strangest of teachers.
Zài jiàn!