This however, is not one of them....
Moving along...I have grown through my life wanting things. I've been told, that is bad. A bad thing to do. And yet, no matter what I try to do, I still seem to do them.
I grew up in Catholicism and found it lacking. Sorely, lacking. I tried many other forms of religion, philosophy (which really, was the start off all this and a brother to psychology which my degree is in), and sociology (a much larger version of psychology).
I settled upon, Buddhism. Very possibly, not a Buddhism you would know or think of. Or maybe possibly so.
I'm not a ritualist, though I understand its usefulness. In any form of theism or philosophy, there is fat. It needs to be trimmed. In writing we have a theory, when you finish your final draft, cut 10% more.
So it is with other forms and disciplines.
I always wanted to be someone who works on computers. I did that. I always wanted to be a Webmaster. I did that. I wanted to be a technical writer. I did that. I wanted to be a writer and author. I've done that.
I wanted to own my own car. My own house, trees, acreage, my own... other things. I've done all that. As a child I wanted to own a mansion, to have servants who waited on me, to own a swimming pool, much acreage, a motorcycle (did that repeatedly), a boat, a plane (I learned to fly and skydive for that matter but my wife wouldn't let me get a plane for some reason, well, we're divorced now).
Then, I realized something.
All my life people said that was all bad. I have seen many stories of people who were materialistic, who became rich, and then were miserable. Donald Trump once said about that, that he knows many rich people and they all seem to be quite happy. Perhaps it's a tail only told by the poor?
Or I've known people who only wanted to sleep around, or to be considered the best in a field, or...whathaveyou.
But then, I realized it.
Speaking only for myself of course, I realized something about all of that. It wasn't that I wanted those things... forever. It wasn't (possibly) that others wanted those things... forever. It was that they wanted to break out of their pigeonhole, into the next level, to experience it, to tire of it, then to move on to another better challenge. Most of them perhaps, simply didn't realize that.
It is those who achieved those things and then sat and did nothing, who were the miserable ones.
I also think these are one of the primary reasons for many to seek out things like religion, philosophy, a guru, extreme sports even, or a therapist.
When really all they need to do is to consider what I'm saying here and follow through.
Of those who realized that and strove to achieve more, what was their choice in continuing on their quest for the next better thing? Did that then in the end make them miserable, too? After all, some people will just always be displeased, always. Avoid those types. On the other hand, it's good to want to achieve more and better, if handled properly. We should always after all, strive to improve, but recognize your achievements and appreciate your efforts for therein lay some of the pleasure.
Or, did they chose the right thing as the next step in the path?
Sometimes the next greater thing, after you hit a certain point, isn't the next obvious step up, but a step away from it. Sometimes, the next step is an oblique to your path, or a reversal.
We just have to realize that in our lives that what we sometimes think is the next step up, only goes so high. One needs to realize when it's time to shift direction. It is those who never see that and then continue on in the same direction always and forever, who suffer.
Those others who see the shifting tides, who can fathom the finest paths to freedom, are the ones who never experience the gloom of satiation and so go on to continue with lives fulfilled with freedom and experience.
That, can be you too.
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