Can Money Buy Happiness?

Dear Readers,

Its Friday at last! I am guessing you all know what that means? Weekend! Come on!! Two whole days of pure bliss!!! Its the little things in life that make the big difference - the joy of a weekend for instance.

You see for a long time in my life - I thought the source of all happiness was money and the source of all unhapiness was lack of money. Is this true? Can money buy happiness? Well it depends on your definition and comprehension of 'happiness' and the personality of the people in question. Such a question can never be satisfactorily answered in a word.

My understanding is that true happiness doesnt lie in what you have, but what you recognise that you have. One of the great leaders in my religion said that if a man had a garden full of gold, and his next door neighbour had one too, he wouldnt be happy unless he had his neighbours garden too. The point is that if happiness is measured by monetary wealth, you can never reach a stage of serenity because you will forever be chasing more money - and God knows you cant take it to the grave when you die so why base your emotions on something so limited.

If I had to answer in a word - then it would have to be no. True happiness is found in people who have learnt to be grateful for what they have rather than too busy and ungrateful chasing after the riches of the world. I have worked in retail and I have seen happier people working as supervisors for supermarkets earning a pittance, working ridiculously hard but yet happier than millionaires who run companies who cant sleep at night because of tension of trying to make more more more more money.

The realisation that money is a lot but not everything was probably one of the greatest realisation i have made in my short life - but the realisation can release so much energy - it can bring about the feeling of serenity which people chasing all the money in the world will never get.

My leaving words for the day are a question -

do you really believe money can buy you happiness - and if you know it cant - why do you still let it rule over your will to achieve serenity and happiness?