What is the Meaning?
Vacations are opportunities for us to rest, to rejuvenate, to reflect on things we have done and to strengthen our dreams and aspirations. I went home this holiday season for a vacation. I did some reflections. However, I did not feel rested. I did not feel rejuvenated. I noticed people frantically going about their holiday rush in malls. Overheard conversations about things acquired. Children carrying sums as gifts. Is this how we find meaning to our lives nowadays? The common denominator is materials. We are consumed by it. New cars, new gadgets. Would these really make us happier people? What about personal relationships? Have we lost sight of these priceless things that give more meaning? I am an observer these days and I was not pleased with what I have observed. This made me restless. What can be done to make people realize? Is it too much to ask for of a society plagued with so much materialism to give it up and look at the bigger picture, the deeper meaning?…Let me leave you with a dialogue that jolted me to realize all of this: “Are we happier as a human race? Is the world fundamentally a better place because of science and technology? We shop at home, we surf the Web but at the same time, we feel emptier and more cut-off from each other than any other time in human history. We’re becoming a synthesized society…We’re looking for the meaning. What is the meaning? We have mindless jobs, we take frantic vacations. Deficit finance trips to the mall to buy more things that we think will fill these holes in our lives. Any wonder we’ve lost our sense of direction.”
