"Consider the lilies of the field..."

Why do we WANT so much? We are born, essentially, with nothing. When does it become about stuff? Why do we feel the need to measure up, to "keep up with the Joneses" as they say? Think about how much money is made in this country because our self-worth is measured by what other people think of us. People are running in droves to have their body altered so they can look better, be thinner, look younger. According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons(ASPS), $10 billion was spent on plastic surgery procedures in the U.S. in 2009. Stop and think what $10 billion dollars could do to help the problems we have in this country. How many people are "cash poor"? Meaning, they look rich, they have the designer clothes, the expensive cars, the big houses but they are buying hot dogs and bologna at the store because that's all they can afford, not that there's anything wrong with hot dogs or bologna, but you get my point. This country's consumer is drowning in debt? Why? Whose fault is it? It's OUR fault, people. Yes, I said it. We can't blame the government, the media, the left or the right. We are responsible for our own selves. Wow! That's a novel concept, isn't it? Ultimately, our choices are our own.
Several years ago, I can remember doing a project with my daughter in elementary school. We had to cut out pictures from a magazine and paste them onto a paper dividing "needs" and "wants". It really is that simple. If we are not happy with our own selves, we won't be happy with our own selves wearing a Rolex, or sitting in a brand new BMW, or with lips that rival Angelina Jolie's either. "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." If you don't recognize it, that sentence comes from the Declaration of Independence. Funny how our "pursuit of happiness" has become our lack of independence.