It's Just Stuff

Now that Christmas has passed and we've all indulged in the gifts and the food, I find myself wondering, like Charlie Brown does in the classic Christmas TV special, about the real meaning of the holidays.  Don't get me wrong, I certainly appreciate spending time with family, friends, and loved ones.

But I'm also saddened by the adverts that appear on TV saying that even though we can make better things we have trouble making things better because poverty and homelessness still exist in this rich country of ours.  I have friends who struggle with loneliness, illness, addiction, lack of money, and unemployment.

I've also seen young people crow over their latest "in" video game or toy, but what I really see is just "stuff": a piece of plastic made from non-renewable resources that will eventually be tossed aside in favour of the next "in" thing.  A blogger I follow (garbagefinds.com) writes about his trash-picking in affluent neighbourhoods and what he finds in others' discards is astounding.

How can people can be so caring and yet so terribly wasteful?  It's like the human race is two-faced with one side apparently blind to the other.

I still remember last summer when the ceiling caved in at my father's house due to a water leak, and Dad was beside himself that several pieces of furniture had to be refinished due to water and impact damage.  But it's just stuff, my brother and I told him.  Nobody was in the affected room at the time, and the rest of the house was secure, so he didn't have to be so upset about it.

People assign either too much or not enough value to the wrong things.  It's still stuff.