Here we are Christmas Day. This has been the quietest Christmas I have ever had. We did not buy presents for each other this year. For me, there is little that I want so there is no point in getting stuff that I do not care about or want. I have had that happen before and what happens is that end up giving the stuff away or re-gift the stuff in a year or so.

In the last few years, I have found that I have gotten less materialistic, which is a good thing. In Western Society, especially in America, materialism and consumerism are rampant. People assume that if they have the latest toy or gadget then it will make them happy. In reality, the things people buy do not make them happy. Research suggests that people today are not has happy as they were in the 1940’s and 1950’s. Those were times of war and recovery and, in many cases, people made do with very little. I think what people really need is a greater sense of community and closer relationships with friends and family.

The problem with society today is that friends and family are seen as disposable. It is all about “me” and if the friends and family you have don’t fit with what you want, then you can replace them. To me this causes great stress and misery in society. People try to compensate by buying stuff and, while that makes them happy for a while, it does not produce a long term fix. What people should do is value what they have and accept that life will never be perfect. Problems cannot be fixed with the latest products but with real solutions, which often involve the help of family and friends.

My suggestion is to ignore all the commercials and advertisements telling you to buy all kinds of junk and try and spend more time with friends and family. Having traveled a little around the world I can tell you that the people who have the least, materially, are the happiest. Why? Because those people understand that having a strong social network of friends and family is very important and that material goods, while nice, are only superficial. In many non-Western Societies, such as Africa, people rely on each other in both the good times and bad and people always stick together. This Christmas maybe we should stop thinking about how rich we may be or how much stuff we have and start to realize that what is really important is people and the relationships we share.