When I was growing up, whenever somebody used the phrase "make something of yourself," it usually implied "make money." The more money you made, the more of something you were, the more valuable you were as a person.

Lately with the economy in such a state of chaos, I'm surprised by how many people on television are distraught because they won't be able to continue to live in a big house or can't buy designer clothes for their kids. True, we all want to live comfortably, but do we really need to measure our happiness or security based on how much stuff we can afford or how many trips we can take by flying first class?

Honestly, there are only two things that really matter.

The first is what we crave when we are born: Do I feel loved? It's a hunger that we carry with us throughout our entire lives.

The second is what we crave when we die: Have I made others feel loved? In human terms, it's a question of whether or not we've lived a good life, that we've been a good person, somebody who will be remembered fondly.

I admit that the economy has put me at unease, and I sometimes catch myself feeling guilty because I haven't had my name somewhere in the Fortune 1000 list, and it's always a possibility that ends will get harder to meet, but as soon as I ask myself the two important questions of life (Do I feel loved, and have I made others feel loved?), an expansive wave of peace rushes over me, and I remember that dollar signs are not signs of love.

If you want to feel as though you've truly made something of yourself, you need to love others, and you need to show that love openly.

So perhaps that is the question that I need to direct my life, to make something of myself: What can I do to show my love for others today?

Labels: Deep Thoughts and Philosophy