Avaricious Acquisition

I pretty much have everything I need to make my life happy and enjoyable. My husband is loving and good-natured, my children have found good partners and job satisfaction, my grandchildren reflect sheer delight, and my extended family appears well adjusted and pleased with each passing day. I have a cozy home, great friends, and wonderfully devoted pets. My health is excellent. My ten mile run this morning attests to that as do my doctor and dentist records. Mind enrichment activities fill my days. I select food wisely, with well being in mind, and I laugh load and long and clear. The sun shines upon my shoulders with warmth as it protects and comforts me. This truly is the life. What more do I need or want?

That is where the situation of avaricious acquisitions comes into play. You know those folks who are never satisfied. They purchase a new, fancy SUV and then moan as they covet the neighbor's new, slightly more fancy sedan. They spend a week in Tahiti basking in luxury only to discover that distant cousins took a similar trip only they stayed longer, spent more, and apparently had double the lavishness and triple the thrill. Their reams of photos, videos, and souvenirs confirm this ad nauseum. Who could imagine anything so fantastically fantastic?

Those who are avaricious need little but want all. Their greed supersedes intelligent buying and smart decisions. Their insatiable desires lead them to stomp out the life and souls of others while accumulation satisfies their thirst for a little while. Sometimes these rapacious individuals share. You might receive an invitation to the garden party or to the opera, but most often these are accompanied by caveats of return favors, like front row seats at a football game or dining preference at an elegant restaurant. And even when it seems that there are no strings attached a seedy residue gathers in your mouth as you wonder why you are here, what you are supposed to do, and how you are supposed to act. Should you speak or remain silent; offer an opinion or nod in agreement; chatter and chat or simply exchange pleasantries? As a duck out of water, a whale on the beach, what are you to do?

There are also invitees ecstatic with the opportunity to meet, greet, and potentially move up to the "East Side", so to speak. While these people are not usually deeply entrenched in avaricious acquisition, they'll seize the chance to do so. No price is too high, no deed is too disdainful if it means moving into the realm of the chosen few. Grasping at fate with hopes of grabbing the brass ring causes some to lose all sense of balance, goodness, and responsible behavior. Being respected by the new circle might appear a pleasant prospect, but just being a tiny part of it is far more valuable at the moment. In fact inclusion is invaluable, unique and precious, irreplaceable and vital. Lasting power is a non-consideration.

But to where does this all lead? To happiness and contentment? To a better, more stable and secure existence? The answer resounds, "Probably not." And so I have to wonder, why is there all the fuss? I do like things: new clothes and shoes, fresh carpet, lovely furniture, and smooth driving transportation. But I prefer to work and earn them while keeping my soul close to my heart and my honesty untouched by corrupt and immoral hands. It makes me happy to reflect on a life of peace and serenity with no big worries about debts incurred.