The minute we open our eyes to receive a brand-new day we are bombarded by advertising, whether on the news, the items we already own, and it continues throughout our day. Whether we realize it or not, we are being sold something (material or other) all the time. It is no wonder that we feel the need to accumulate more things and think that we actually need most of these items to live. We have learned to build status, a persona, around these things, and many times, we confuse who we are with the number of things or status we possess. Society builds itself around opportunities to have and have more, as well as the perception other people have of what we own. If we don’t own, we might not feel at par with the rest and we feel diminished. Why is that?

We have placed more value on our material possessions than on the God-given gifts and abilities we have; we have become our possessions and to have less than what society expects of us is unacceptable for many people. If we don’t follow the herd, we feel marginalized because sometimes, we are. The day we open our eyes and wake up, that is the day that we realize that we are more than what we own, and that our human value surpasses all of that. We understand that any material items in our lives are a blessing and not an extension of our Self. Then, we become grateful and free, not controlled or cursed by our material possessions or even the emotional weight that these put on us. Gratefulness opens the door for generosity and sharing. The true essence of who we are starts to emerge.