Sustainability and a gift that keeps on giving.

Isn't that interesting? We are in the middle of a very special moment in our history as a society and a species. And yet, even that experience hasn't challenged our love for objects and shopping. And also our Christmas thirst for more, more and more...

We all talk about sustain-ability and our planet and then... we buy dozens of random objects that will sooner or latter reach their 'emotional used-by date' and be left behind - forgotten, unloved and passed on as unnecessarily cluttering our lives (if not simply elegantly discarded at the earliest opportunity...). Talk as it turns out, despite the wisdom of the popular saying, can be quite expensive.

Yet, there are things that cannot be simply bought with money. May I suggest true, lasting Happiness? Youth? Time spent in the company of your loved ones and people your care about?

I know some uncommonly wealthy individuals who are also incredibly miserable and sad within. Their financial wealth is only matched by the level of their discontent and sorrow. You might know people like that too. They can afford to chase every whim and fancy and so there is that drive to keep on buying various 'things' that provide a short spike of 'happiness', which, sooner rather than later, is replaced by a backlog of Misery spelt with a capital 'M'. A sustainable approach? Perhaps. But a wise one?

Happiness is not something that you have, it is something that you do. It is not about possession at all (by the way, have you noticed that funny relation between the noun 'possessions' and the verb 'to possess'? Who is owning whom in that relationship with your 'things'?).

So you either are happy or you are not. Because true Happiness cannot be 'had', as in acquired by making a purchase. It is a mindset, a state of mind that depends on your personal, individual perspective on life and what is important for you. And I can promise you one thing - if you love objects more than people, it will most likely make for a very lonely lifetime indeed. So ask yourself: Is this what I truly want?

I can imagine that by writing all this I am already pushing some rather uncomfortable buttons, deeply embedded in many of us by our consumerist, planet-destroying, socially-distancing culture. Because we have been increasingly socially-distancing for at least half a century now... Have you noticed?

But we wanted sustain-ability, right? That is more than just empty words. What is sustainable about the crazy run for the shops to fill our homes with even more objects, every single decade? When is enough really enough? In a year of a global pandemic, people just spend, spend, spend to buy transient happiness as if it could provide a solution for an unfulfilling lifestyle and lack of quality relationships. Can we learn to be Happy with what we have and find some peace within?

And can you buy the ability to sustain your Youth? And I am not talking about some anti-wrinkle creams and botox jabs but that brief time on this planet that you are granted here. Can you buy a ticket to re-live your childhood, or 20s or whatever period you might be particularly fond of? If you can, please send me a link to that store.

When all the dust has settled, you will only be left with memories of experiences that you had when you were 'young', moments you spent with people of your choice or sometimes completely random strangers for that matter. So why not, instead of cluttering the space with objects, save the dosh and instead invest into bringing about experiences of time spent together, online and offline, rising that game to a whole new level so that in decades to come you will recall that time with no regrets but a feeling of money well spent.

Our current predicament is proving testing indeed, I grant you that. But if you can spend, spend, spend on 'stuff' I dare you to be equally creative in conjuring up magic in other people's lives too, by offering them the greatest gift of all - your only non-renewable resource: your time.

And if you already bought a lot of stuff for everyone, great! Make sure it counts, add that special personal touch and reach out to the recipients to expand on the opportunity to deepen those relationships beyond offering a mere box. That would be a good return on investment, wouldn't you agree? And next Christmas, and on various occasions throughout the year, why not love people more than objects and have them feel that love by truly connecting with them and giving life to memories that cannot be retrospectively bought with money. A priceless gift indeed.