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Have a blessed Christmas and a connected New Year!Posted Thursday, December 24, 2009, at 2:21 PM
So the stockings are not as full...
This economy is tough. Maybe you're not able to buy that iPod touch -- that Wii with Mario Kart -- that dream vacation. Let's face it -- none of us has three Wise Men bringing us gold, etc. Of course none of us is the king of kings and lord of lords either. Why is it that we cannot admit -- hey -- we're middle class, and the disparity between wealth and less wealth is growing? We must be wealthy in new ways. Take it from someone who thinks Mario Kart looks really fun, would like a Wii fit and Guitar Hero, but isn't getting any of it this year. How can we be wealthy in new ways? I miss having money and buying what I like, within reason. It's connections. There's a happy planet index here: http://www.happyplanetindex.org/ It ranks nations throughout the world in terms of life expectancy, life satisfaction, and ecological footprint. Which country do you suppose came in first place? The U.S.? Land of the brave; home of the free? Um...no, but close. The U.S. is actually behind such lively beacons as Russia, Madagascar and the Congo, and ranks 114th out of 143 countries. If you hate America, you should move to Russia. I love being an American. Sometimes love must be tough. We've moved so far into valuing aquisition, a sense of entitlement, and longing for that thing that will make us happy, we've lost our joy. The top five nations on the Happy Planet Index? Costa Rica Dominican Republic Jamaica Guatemala Vietnam I've been to Guatemala and Costa Rica, and while I am not sure I'd live there, I was, in fact, very happy while there and in spite of militia with automatic weapons on the streets of Guatemala City, orphans in the rural areas living in what to us would be treehouses, and artisans in the market at Antigua too quickly lowering their prices to sell something, anything to northern tourists. Costa Ricans report the highest life satisfaction in the world, have the second-highest life expectancy (the highest for men) and leave the smallest ecological footprint in their industry and waste. Their citizens all have access to health care, housing and education, and for centuries their system of food -- crops and fishing primarily -- has fed its people well. That's about all they have, besides woods, jungle and miles of pristine shoreline. They also report the highest social connections of any country. The U.S. reports one of the worst. Close social contact is one of the main indicators of life expectancy and satisfaction. What does this mean? For us, it means get together, build the social bonds with family, friends and neighbors, leave your comfort zone and reach out a bit. So you can't fill stockings and under the tree with box upon box of new acquisitions and the latest gear. Have a Costa Rican Christmas, build relationships and look forward to our summer beaches and blue water. Comments Showing comments in chronological order [Show most recent comments first] |
Amy Hillgren Peterson has been married to Ed since 1992 and is the mother of three children: one at Spencer High School, one at Spencer Middle School, and one at Lincoln Elementary School. Her articles and essays have won several awards and have appeared in local and national publications. She is the author of a memoir and a novel, and is currently at work on a trilogy of stage plays. She blogs about faith, relationships, simple, sustainable living, mental health and creative writing.
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A Costa Rica Christmas sounds nice! Especially the beaches and blue water.
One NICE thing about our little snowstorm was that I am sure that it forced more families to sit tight and lay low. We had a lovely family day. We didn't have as many presents, and frozen pizza was our Christmas dinner. But, we were together.
We were in Omaha on Christmas. It was hectic trying to get up those ice covered hills but was kind of a fun experience. We hunted down the only open pizza place in the area around our hotel. Sat in the hot tub, went swimming, and watched the food network. That was just my mom, my 2 brothers, my boyfriend, and me. It was nice, now that I look back on it.
Amy,
While I agree that enjoying the company of friends and family goes alot further in making us happy than the accumulation of possesions I do have one issue. Believing in the maps and diagrams of the NEF is essentialy the equivalent to taking the word of PETA on cruelty to animal issues. Both are private organizations who use more propaganda than fact to promote their ideas and agendas.
I believe that if more people used their common sense and developed themselves without the input of special interest groups (such as these and others) that the US would be a much happier place. And I do not think the US is that unhappy as a whole. My belief is that it is more media spin than reality.
I am not saying that we could not learn techniques for better living from other cultures but on the other hand our country's culture has developed much in part to the meshing of different cultures. Other countries can and do learn from us as well.
I know that many points have been missed or overlooked as my opinion was expressed in this blog. Could this be written about and pondered for hours? Definitely! This does make for great discussion!
As for myself I will relish my much appreciated position in the great USA right behind(according only to the NEF) Russia, China, Iran, etc. and enjoy an evening of listening to the children argue over who gets the next turn on the Wii.
Everyone have a great 2010 and remember you live in the greatest country on the planet! Oh and please thank a soldier when ever you have a chance!
Thanks, DeweyH for being you and posting your opinion. I have to say, the NEF is measuring happiness as objectively as such a subjective concept can be measured, and using standard measures across the board. PETA, on the other hand, spouts whatever loud nonsense it can invent to supposedly further its cause.