Self-deception: when money is more important than friends

"To let friendship die away by negligence and silence is certainly not wise. It is voluntarily to throw away one of the greatest comforts of the weary pilgrimage."
- Samuel Johnson, English writer and lexicographer (1709-1784)

Life is not about continually striving to make more money. Those who believe that money is critical to their happiness are never happy. They use money as a substitute for happiness because they don't know how to find happiness. They have lost their way to happiness.

Life is not about convenience. A happy person doesn't do just what is convenient, because much of what is worthwhile in life, stuff that makes us happy, is not convenient.

Maintaining friendships is often not convenient. "Friends will wait while I am busy with other things" is an attitude that gives evidence that the speaker has lost the value of friendship.

Losing the value of friendship may indicate the loss of the path to happiness. Once lost, we may never find our way back. In our confusion, we substitute other things for happiness, then persuade ourselves that what we now believe is important is really important.

Friends are really important. Maintaining friendships is hard work. It's inconvenient sometimes.

Friends need something from us and often have little to give back. If we aren't prepared to give more than we get, they won't be there for us when we need more than we can give.

Get over it. Get on with it, if life means anything to you.

Bill Allin
'Turning It Around: Causes and Cures for Today's Epidemic Social Problems,' striving to teach what is really important in life.
Learn more at http://billallin.com/cgi/index.pl