Things and the Things We Make of Them: A Retraction.

In regard to my last post, I’d like to print a retraction. A retraction to the statement that “I’ve never cared for bumper stickers.” It’s not that all of a sudden I care for bumper stickers. No, I actually still don’t care for them. But rather, I spotted one today that I actually took a fancy to; one that actually took the subject matter for which it was commenting on and summed it up quite nicely.

The sticker said, “The best things in life are not things.” Simple, concise, yet really deep. (As opposed to the sticker I saw that said, “Honk if you hate people.”) So, let’s think about that for a minute shall we? The best things in life are not things. Why do you think that would be?

Well, for one thing, things cease to be after a certain amount of time passes. So, if one equates “the best” with longevity, then certainly things would not be considered “the best.” But, ultimately it comes down to what you define as “the best.”

Some definitions of “the best” used in society today (as speculated and not proven by the clay):

The best – whatever brings happiness personally at the particular time in question.
Example: That cheeseburger was the best.

The best – something that brings happiness to as many people as possible.
Example: That concert was absolutely the best.

The best – someone or something that wins frequent first place prizes.
Example: Takeru "The Tsunami" Kobayashi is the best hotdog eater ever to eat hotdogs.

The best – the most efficient path or product at doing a particular job or task.
Example: The best way home is to take Interstate 5.

As you can see, the definition of “the best” varies quite a bit. So, in the context of “The best things in life aren’t things,” what “the best” are we referring to? Cheeseburgers? Hotdog eaters? Interstates? Here’s where I think the statement is so brilliant. It takes the understood definitions of “the best” and forces you throw them out when it says the best isn’t things.

Ultimately, things were not meant to be the dominating force in our lives. I’m just going to say that. We were not meant to collect and collect until we die. We were not meant to gather a certain amount of things and sit on them until we die. Things are not what life was meant to be about. Things are nice, yes. They can be very fulfilling at times. I find that when I go hiking, having things make the trips far more enjoyable than if I did not. Hiking boots, backpack, water bottle, socks, pants, etc. all make the outdoor experience very pleasant. But, I could easily spend countless amounts of time and money collecting these hiking things and not enjoy a single one of them. Why? Because all I’m focused on is collecting this stuff rather than using it for the purpose it was intended for; to aid me in enjoying the outdoors.

See, things are essentially tools when you boil it all down. They are meant to help you enjoy life. Life is beyond things. If you live for things, you miss the point; you give out false credit.

Now, this all may be easy to agree with. Sure, it easy to see the superficiality of living life dedicated to things. However, check yourself. Are there earbuds coming out of your ears that you’d be willing to part with? Is there a car in your driveway that you just can’t live without? Are there stacks of DVDs or scores of television channels that you feel are essential to your day to day comings and goings? There’s absolutely nothing wrong with these things, but what’s wrong is our dependence on them; our need to have them in order to feel good.

For example, yesterday being Valentine’s Day a lot of things were exchanged. Also, a lot of things, recently, have been deemed necessary to have a successful February 14th. Chocolate, champagne, boyfriend or girlfriend, dinner reservations, romantic meal, romantic movie, romantic music, romantic card, all of these things are not bad, but certainly we can see the success of a single day does not depend on the existence of such things. I felt my day was quite successful with a frozen pizza, the Ramones, old episodes of The Simpsons, and eventually the movie Capote. I felt that I was able to reflect on how I loved the people around me as well as the people I would come across in the near and distant future quite successfully while munching on a Tony’s Pepperoni pizza.

At the end of the day, when all is said and done, when things take over our lives, people are no longer a priority. In fact, people seem to get in the way of our acquiring more things. This is fundamentally wrong. People should be our priority. Jesus didn’t say, “Love your things like yourself,” but rather, “Love your neighbor.” A neighbor carries a distinct quality that separates itself from things. That is, that a neighbor is alive. A neighbor is alive like you are alive; in the human fashion of being alive. So, people take a priority over things.

This is a difficult lesson to take to practice. Things have been practically wired into our thinking from day 1 and it’s going to take a serious re-wiring to get people in front of things. I’m not speaking from the other side either, I have to same wiring everyone else does. I have earbuds in my ears right now that I think are pretty fundamental in my enjoyment of the day. That’s wrong. But, it just shows I have some work to do.