We live in a society of pure excess. Even the ‘poor’ among us have luxuries. Those who are struggling to get by still manage to have a tv and computer and a place to live. I’m guilty of it. We live paycheck to paycheck but I still have my computer and internet. How sad is that? I can’t complain about anything.

A friend of mine went on a missionary trip to Africa. She told me how children there, if they are even able to go to school, sit on dirt floors and used books that are tattered and falling apart. They’ve never even seen a candy bar or a piece of bubble gum. They have maybe two pairs of clothing at a time, and no shoes. They’ve never owned a pair of shoes. They don’t have basics like peroxide, band-aids, or even clean water to wash scrapes and cuts with it. They don’t have electricity at all. They cook over an open fire when they even have food. BUT… they are happy.

When my smartphone died, I was upset and angry. How dare I… how dare we, as a society, base so much of our happiness of pure worthless junk? How dare we take things like running water and electric lights for granted?