How do we reconcile "what is" with "what we want it to be?"

To accept what is from the ego's perspective is the equivalent of giving up.  But are we really giving up?

We put a lot of stock in dreams--the things we imagine that we want.  Sometimes these dreams come true, and this we equate to living life to its fullest.  By default the opposite--not fulfilling our dreams--is often associated with not living life to its fullest.  This can result in feeling empty and dissatisfied with our lives.

So where do dreams come from?  Perhaps from what Daniel Quinn referred to in his book Ishmael, as the whisperings of Mother Culture.  The whisperings he referred to aren't written down anywhere, yet they are practically universal in our awareness.  Two cornerstones of American culture have been freedom and ownership.

Immigrants left Europe for the freedom to practice the religion of their choice and the opportunity to own land.  These ideals have been realized and carried forward to the present.  A modern day example is the dream of owning your own home.  In the process we've attributed power and status to our possessions.  And naturally in a free-market economy, money has become the means and life-blood of granting all our dreams.

Without money our path to fulfillment appears blocked.  Ask yourself this question: Would Barack Obama be our president-elect today without some of the most prodigious fundraising in campaign history?  Certainly the man's character, his presence, and wise judgment have something to do with his election, but without the money to provide the means to demonstrate these fine qualities would the outcome have been the same?

Today we are witnessing historic events as the biggest financial institutions require unprecedented capital infusions.  Has the irony of this situation hit home?  The people with all the money--the people who never imagined they'd need money--are the ones now being given billion dollar infusions to prevent their collapse and ultimate demise.  These are the very same people who sit in judgment of our creditworthiness--the ones who decide whether we are worthy of receiving the money needed to pursue our dreams.

Now the automakers who've made fortunes from enticing us to dream and selling us their cars are on the verge of bankruptcy.  They're begging for money to stave off their demise.

Money never means as much as when you don't have any…or when you don't have enough!

So what's the point of all these observations?

First, what changes around us provides us with a mirror into ourselves.  It's an opportunity for us to change as well.  Is money the means to our salvation?  Is it the only means to our fulfillment?  And if it is, how much is enough?  Where do we draw the line between meeting our needs and seeking a level of affluence that rapidly becomes arrogant and wasteful?

Second, for the past two decades economic expansion has been largely driven with the creation of debt.  Easy credit has given us exactly what we thought we wanted…the money to pursue our dreams.  But this easy money has a nasty way of turning into a nightmare.  Just ask anyone who jumped into the white hot real estate market only to get burned by adjustable rate mortgages and grossly inflated values.  Using other people's money seems like a great way to get what we don't have, but remember it's only one interpretation of living life to the fullest.

Third, nothing in our existence is independent of everything else.  Sure, money makes us feel independent, but all money comes from somewhere.  Do you wish your bank had failed so perhaps your mortgage could have been cancelled along with it?  It never works that way.  Your debt is someone else's asset, and that person, institution, or investor is very serious about getting their money back with interest. 

But this is where we need to recognize our interdependence.  Your ability to repay what you owe is dependent on your source of income--typically your job.  Which is dependent on your employer continuing to have a viable product or service, the sale of which, provides the revenue to pay you.  Do you see?  Ultimately, the closer we come to recognizing our interdependence the less value we will place on hoarding wealth and the more disdain we will have for personal greed.

What do you think?