“This planet has – or rather had – a problem, which was this: most of the people living on it were unhappy for pretty much of the time.

Many solutions were suggested for this problem, but most of these were largely concerned with the movements of small green pieces of paper, which is odd because on the whole it wasn’t the small green pieces of paper that were unhappy.”

- Douglas Adams

It’s been interesting to, in my lifetime, watch the complete evolution of our monetary system.  I wonder if my children will ever know what ‘cash’ actually is.  Where once we existed as a trade and barter society we now, mostly digitally, exchange pieces of printed linen which only have meaning because we said so.

And money, at least in America, is no longer backed by gold.  I could not walk up to a bank and succeed at exchanging my 10s and 20s for gold coin.  What is money?  What is it, really?

And why do we let it rule our lives?

Money is one thing I have had to seriously rethink as I have engaged my life (r)evolution.  In a recession, we feel under seige from debtors or potential debtors.  We live in fear that we may not be able to give them enough ‘pieces of green paper’, or give it to them on time.  We let money, and our fear of its scarcity, rule our lives.

“I can’t quit my job.  I won’t have any money!”

Few people want money in and of itself.  I know I don’t.  I just want the things that having money allows.  Travel.  Delicious food.  Freedom.  So we scramble at 9-5 jobs, some of us even work longer than that, to what?  Trade our time for money?

Time, our time, is so precious, that we actually trade it.

Why is time so precious?

Because it is the one thing that we have that can never be replenished.  You can always make more money.  You can always find a deal.  You can always reconnect with love or fear or hate.  You can forgive and know forgiveness.

It’s the inexorable onward march of time, however, that can never be stemmed.  Once gone, it is gone forever.  Thus, time is so valuable that we trade it – time with our family, time with our Beloved, time to explore what interests us, time to do what we are moved to do – all this we pay for a paycheck.

Do I need to be a millionaire?

People who amass millionaire or billionaire status trade more of their time than I do.  Trade more opportunities to build connection.  Do I need a building with my name on it?  It’s interesting that the people who are most concerned about leaving a legacy are the wealthy.  Perhaps it is because they realize that they can’t exist in the hearts and memories of those who loved them…because they were too busy not being around.

Perhaps that is why ‘do what you love’ resonates so deeply.  If you do what you love and happen to amass money because of it, you have never traded – never sacrificed – never settled to do so.  It’s the difference between fully living and just phoning it in until you get to ‘your’ time on the weekend.

Do what you love?

Understand what you love.  Perhaps you are like me and you detest tedium and filing while exulting in interpersonal communication.  Expressing this ‘love’ doesn’t have to be on a grand scale.

If, for example, my business flames out and I need to reenter the workforce so I can accumulate yet more little pieces of green paper to pay my mortgage, I can yet find a place where I can establish relationships with others.

Life is a Gift.

Don’t try to return your gift for money.

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