Red Deer Reality Rant #75 - What Money Can't Buy, A List of Gratitude
Hello and welcome back for another Red Deer Reality Rant. I took last Monday off from all jobs including this one and had a quiet day at home. Things have been hectic with illness at home but thankfully we’re all on the mend now. Today is Thanksgiving and a holiday too, but I can’t resist the opportunity to celebrate what this day means to me. Therefore today’s post is all about gratitude.
Some people don’t celebrate thanksgiving because of negative connotations and yes, there is some bad history involved. But moving forward and healing is as much a part of Truth and Reconciliation as remembrance and grieving. Thanksgiving Day to me has never been about pilgrims coming to the new world. Because I don’t follow religion it has no religious significance either as with most holidays.
However, the meaning is in the right place. Thanksgiving Day is a day to remember and reflect and celebrate all that is good in our lives. A meal with friends or family is often held, traditionally the bounty of the harvest and in other traditions an offering of peace. All of these things are great sentiments and no matter who you are or where you come from, being grateful is an essential part of life.
Last year at this time I wrote this blog and wrote about five things that I am grateful for being in Red Deer. This time I have another list of things that I am grateful for in the theme of things that money can’t buy, despite living in a capitalist society here in Canada. I am however, grateful to live in Canada, there are things wrong with the system and it is a price paid to live our lifestyles and to have our technology. But I do believe that my life might be much worse if I lived elsewhere in the world.
Anyway, here is a list of things money can’t buy that I am grateful for in my life:
Friends. Maybe money can buy some friends, but they are absolutely the wrong kind. I am grateful to have some friends in my life who I share similar values and ideals with.
Integrity. This is my moral code. I cannot be bought or sold, persuaded by money to go against what I believe in.
Family. Again, there are some family members that are all about money. But I am grateful that my family is supportive, they are here for me and finances have nothing to do with it.
Honesty. It really is the best policy. I like to be truthful, and have been told that I do it to a fault. It’s really just part of who I am.
Respect. Money can buy respect, but it is also the wrong kind to have in my opinion. People may be rich and respected, but at the same time can be hated and inspire envy in others. I am grateful to have some people in my life who respect me for who I am as a person and not what I possess.
Maybe this list seems like a no brainer, but it is what is most valuable to me. It is what keeps me going and the very reason that I am still alive. Without these things, even if I had millions of dollars, I would still be very poor indeed. That being said, millions of dollars would be very nice to have. But that is not what life is about, at least not in the world I want to live in.
###