As 2008 comes to a close it’s important to remember… well, it’s important to remember what’s important. Ben Stein does a pretty good job of that in this article. He is ostensibly talking about the fallout from Bernard Madofff’s Ponzi scheme, but he says a whole lot more:
We are more than our investments. We are more than the year-to-year or day-by-day changes in our net worth. We are what we do for charity. We are how we treat our family and friends. We are how we treat our dogs and cats. We are what we do for our community and our nation. If you had $100 million or $100,000 a year ago and now you have a lot less, you’re still the same person. You’re not a balance sheet, at least not one denominated in money…
It’s a tough thing to remember in a business measured by commissions. Our lives are surrounded by miracles and drowned out by laughter. Having money may improve our lifestyle, but it does not improve us. Losing money may cause us hardship, but it does not lessen us. Our happiness is a function of how happy we see ourselves at our core. It is a choice of awareness. Ben Stein gets that. Choose to be happy – it’s more fun.
Filed under: LIFE THAT POPs, POLITICAL & ECONOMIC FOLLY , Ben Stein, happiness, Madoff
