by TBAcademics

Created on: April 19, 2008

I'm thinking of how tickled I'd be to have a few more pennies right now. A grand would do wonders for my morale, too. I think money can potentially "really bring happiness," if the lack of it, in the past, has resulted in misery. Along with the title, comes the temptation to romanticize a response and immediately hone in on those traditionally idealistic notions such as, "Money isn't everything." Try convincing someone who can't afford health insurance, and was recently diagnosed with Diabetes. When it's the money or your life, a fine line emerges between well-meaning cliches and condescension.

"Money can't buy happiness."
You wanna bet? My thoughts immediately revert back to some very challenging, college days in Louisville, when my primary residence was a Celica- then years later, I upgraded accommodations to a Mazda. I was in a city I loved with no one to love me. And in the most desperate of times, love can mean putting your money where your mouth is. I was surrounded by family who simply reassured me they'd pray for me. This was not because I was on drugs, criminally insane or prone to any other "undesirable" choices; in fact, I was "on the run" from a social circle and significant others, who were chemically-bound or just downright abusive. I packed up and left town, fleeing to a city, where supposedly, kind-hearted relatives were abound. Thank God, I knew the safer parking lots in town. Many nights, I actually slept in peace. But, the last form of condescension I would've ever wanted to hear was that, "money can't buy happiness." My response, then, would've been, "Try me."

Here's the one we love to hate: "Money is the root of all evil." If that were the case, there would be no successful non-profits or charities, on the planet. Money is not inherently good or evil. Mix a little malcontent motive, with the human ego, and there you have it- a force to be reckoned with. When fighting over money, it may be the fundamental basis of rampant warring; for example, family feuding. But, essentially, if money were "a seed," it wouldn't automatically sprout into weeds, when watered.

Money can fulfill needs. Money can also present another set of needy circumstances. Neediness can take the form of greed. Neediness can take the form of pleading for more and more, once one has squandered a foretold, limited amount of what they had. Happiness, on the other hand, is a need fulfilled. Happiness, in and of itself, is a circumstance; therefore, it is very possible to be happy

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