Greetings One and All ....

                      

Few words pluck at my emotion strings as much as the word “greed.” It gives me a queasy feeling in the pit of my stomach and I thought it would be good to explore the reasons why this may be so.

 

Roget's Thesaurus offers a number of synonyms for the word 'greed' such as avarice, covetousness, craving, excess, gluttony, grabby, insatiableness, piggishness, the gimmies, voracity .. .ahhh .. we were getting to it now.

 

Thinking back to my catholic upbringing, I am reminded of the Tenth Commandment of the Old Testament – Thou Shalt Not Covet – which loosely equates in today's terms to – It not a good idea to enviously want more than you need and to step on others to get it. The operative word here is 'enviously.'

 

Wow .. does this mean that buying the same pair of shoes in three different colors is bad? Or that after seeing your friend sport a flashy diamond ring, your wanting to hightail it to the nearest jewelry store to get yourself one at twice the size is evil? Not necessarily, but it may indicate that we have issues with not having 'enough'.

 

Greed, or 'grabbiness' is a problem because it causes us to want and want and never be satisfied with what we already have.

 

Greed about money, or material things many times has its roots in our past where we may not have had 'enough' .. so when we come to a point in our lives where we can afford to have what we want, we may go overboard about it and spend, spend, spend. I feel that this is a normal reaction in most people. However ... there is always that underlying 'gimme' thing that is harmful to ourselves and hurtful to others.

 

When our wants become out of control to the point where we disregard someone else's needs – it becomes a problem.

 

When our desires get blown out of proportion so much so that we lose site of the good of the whole and concentrate only on ourselves – it becomes a problem.

 

When our daily thoughts are consumed with accumulating more and more in our own pocket to the exclusion of everyone and everything – it becomes a problem.

 

At that juncture we may need to take a step back and review our list of goals, desires, wants and needs.

 

If our getting ahead means stepping on someone else's toes, it is time to adjust our plan so that nobody gets hurt by our actions. This is not to say that we should become complacent and just sit idly behind the stalled vehicle in front of us while the traffic light cycles and cycles. No, that is the opposite end of the spectrum ... but it does mean that we must open our eyes, make sure nobody is coming, pull out into the other lane and pass the stalled vehicle safely. Take care of ourselves, but don't do it at someone else's expense.

 

There is always going to be a stalled vehicle in our path – an obstacle, as it were -- just as there is always going to be opportunity for advancement. And, if we take our time and relax, we will also see that we will have everything that we want or need, by heeding that small, still voice within that guides us on a daily basis.

It all boils down to trust and responsibility – trust in ourselves that we have the ability within us to provide for our own needs, wants and goals and responsibility to do so with an eye on our Higher Purpose – that which benefits the good of the whole from the big picture.

So, if you want to splurge and buy yourself a flashy diamond ring and can afford it, good for you !

 

If acquiring forty acres of land up in the hills somewhere is your dream – great! I hope you recognize a way to get it.

 

And, if buying three pair of comfortable shoes, one in each of your favorite colors will make you happy – excellent !

 

The idea here is that if nobody gets hurt from the fulfillment of your needs, wants and goals, if nobody toes get stepped upon in order for you to have what you want – then greed is not in operation and you are blessed! Be grateful.

Keeping our eye on the common good does more than just help others .. it helps us as well. It helps us to remember that we are all one and that we all benefit from each other's fortune. Greed is unnecessary when we recognize that having enough, and even more than enough if we can swing it, is o.k. - we deserve to have our desires met.

Be blessed, One and All ...