by Donna Marie Gray

Created on: February 20, 2007   Last Updated: April 30, 2007

The satisfaction of having enough is not about what you have, but what you do with what you have. I have never been a compulsive buyer, or one who needed every new and modern device that hit the market. I proudly attribute this to my New England upbringing. We are a frugal lot.

Necessity dictates that we become part of the modern world. We do need the conveniences, but we need to keep them simple and cost effective. This is more important than having all the new bells and whistles. The less options, the less problems.

Satisfaction comes from appreciating the simple things in life and from our learning experiences. These experiences are the sum of who we are. Our values come from the things life has taught us. If we are not in awe of the world we live in, if the seasons do not impress us, if we fail to appreciate the beauty of the sights and sounds around us, then we have learned nothing.

I grew up feeling as though I had everything I ever needed or wanted. We weren't wealthy, and my parents actually decided what I needed versus what I wanted. Thus, my suggestions were taken into consideration, and they (holding the purse strings) took into consideration such things as how deserving was I of the things I wanted.

My husband, on the other hand, was a Navy Brat, and traveled often. Space was the main consideration for what he could or could not acquire. He, therefore, spent a good deal of his adult life never having enough of anything to satisfy him. To him, I seemed to be a tightwad. To me, he was a senseless spendthrift!

As our married life progressed, we seemed to accumulate more stuff than I knew what to do with. If there was an empty corner in the house, he would want to buy something to put there. I considered that clutter. If I favorably commented on something I saw, he went out and bought it. There seemed to be no end to what was enough, and surely nothing satisfied him for very long.

It wasn't until he experienced some bad business deals, and fell on financially difficult times that I was able to change his thinking on being a tightwad as opposed to sensible spending. We are now on common ground for spending; but I am still trying to dispose of accumulated stuff which is way too much to satisfy me!

Being able to have an education which, in turn, allows us to pursue a worthwhile career, should be enough to satisfy anyone. But for the academically challenged, or for those with limited financial means, one must look toward a talent on which they can build a future.

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