A Friendly Reminder

Your car isn't the latest model. Her clothes aren't the most sought after designs. That couple's wedding NEEDS to be at an expensive venue. Her dress NEEDS to cost thousands or else she won't be happy that she's marrying the "love of her life". He NEEDS that vacation to some island in the Caribbean. He NEEDS to waste more money on alcohol. I NEED to buy that pair of shoes. I NEED the newest phone. I NEED NEED NEED. A needy culture blinded by consumerism. The more we consume, the higher we are on the social pyramid. The more we buy, the more we can flaunt. The more we can prove we're part of a class "everyone" wants to be a part of.

On the flip side of that picture are the hundreds of thousands of people who don't have a place to live, water to drink, food to eat, medicine for their illnesses, basic education for their children, plumbing for their waste etc etc etc. All very basic human needs that we take for granted. There are people trying to escape dangerous situations to provide a better future for their children as we speak, only to see them drown in oceans that have already claimed the lives of many once hopeful refugees. 

But it's not our business. We don't have to worry about it. We are blessed. The chosen ones, right? We forget that humanity is all one big family. That we are all sisters and brothers. That the pain of one relative should at least draw some of our attention. Unfortunately, many of us are too blinded by our own lifestyles and the lifestyles we admire to notice those in need. Imagine if reality TV shows were about people who lived in horrible conditions. What if the media always bombarded us with things we need to see in order to help our family? Instead, we watch "reality" TV shows about celebrities with plastic surgery and tons of money, slowly being brainwashed into thinking that this is what our life needs to look like. We start thinking that we need to work towards that lifestyle and only then are we accomplished and successful. That in order to be special we need to consume more than we will ever need. 

Not only that, but many of us think our time here on earth is purely for our enjoyment. That we are here to have fun and when our time is up, the fun's over. Each struggle we face, no matter how small, doesn't and shouldn't belong in our lives. That struggling is inconvenient, holding us back from "happiness" or consumerism. If we're struggling and don't have lots of money we can't consume as much as we're trained to consume. So we live our lives trying to reach a standard of living that is everything but "standard" and nothing but unnecessary. We die and our children inherit the same lifestyle. The cycle continues from one generation to the next and so on. 

Except it has to end sometime right? We all have to wake up one day. Realize that thousand dollar watches and million dollar mansions aren't actually necessary when there are people who need only a fraction of that money to gain access to basic human needs. If anything is necessary, it's our own reevaluation of our lifestyles, goals and contributions to the world we live in. I say this not to preach, but as a reminder to myself before anyone else, that the world needs us to be aware of our surroundings. Even more importantly, we need to be aware of one another's struggles. Educating ourselves is the least we can do and hopefully one day we all have the means to have a proactive stance. But it all starts with a determined intent to change. It starts with realizing that many of our efforts need to be redirected at contributing rather than just consuming. Maybe we can start with getting rid of aspects of our lives that do nothing to advance humanity, no matter how insignificant we think those changes might be. Some positive change is better than no positive change at all. 

I'm also not saying this to argue that consumerism is all wrong. What is wrong is consuming so much that we forget to give back. The technology we use and the means we have can be put to better use. For example, we can work on raising awareness about important issues, talk to different people from around the world to see their perspectives, look for trustworthy charities to donate to, educate ourselves etc. We can use our resources to mobilize against corruption and to work towards a conscious society that is there for one another. A society that doesn't feed off one another's misery and exploitation, but on each other's positivity and encouragement. 

Just something to ponder:

"Indeed, Allah enjoins justice, and the doing of good to others; and giving like kindred; and forbids indecency, and manifest evil, and wrongful transgression. He admonished you that you may take heed" (Quran 16:91) 

"Give to the near of kin his due, and also to the needy and the wayfarers. Do not squander your wealth wastefully; for those who squander wastefully are Satan's brothers, and Satan is ever ungrateful to his Lord" (Quran 17:26- 27)

"Indeed, Allah does not like those who are self-deluding and boastful. Who are stingy and enjoin upon [other] people stinginess and conceal what Allah has given them of His bounty - and We have prepared for the disbelievers a humiliating punishment -" (Quran 4:36-37)