My Beacon is Lit

My favorite part about Tuesdays With Morrie, is the constant message Morrie sends about the difference between what we perceive as necessary, versus the realities of the human condition. We live in a culture where the artificiality of materialism and popular-culture are passed down to us as ailments to the maladies which plague us. Wealth, and its inflated sense of ego, does not determine our happiness; yet if you turn on the television, we are told the exact opposite.

I try not to be cynical about things like this, because I know it is wrong to assume the ignorance of others, or to believe that I am above people who buy into things which I don't agree with or understand. It is difficult to draw the line between a pretentious lecture, or a healthy discussion. The trick is not to take things personally, and to give each other the benefit of the doubt. After-all, as a whole we are a peaceful, hardworking, family-orientated, and intelligent population of 300-million people. We can point our fingers at the bad apples, or blame others for the problems that concern us, but it never really gets us anywhere. 

It is important to utilize our experiences, i.e what we know, as beacons that we can light for others to see. We cannot guarantee that other people will steer their ships in our direction, but we know that we did what we could, using what we believed to be truth. The problem with television, materialism, and popular-culture is not that they are inherently wrong; it is simply that they cannot be substituted for the culture that we spent so many thousands of years creating through our genuine experiences. 

Life does not differentiate between expensive mansions or a house built out of necessity. Nor does it differentiate in the same way with cars, televisions, bank accounts, designer clothes, shoes, phones, jewelry,  etc. And most importantly: the value of a person's life is not determined by their ability to acquire or create any of the above.