In early sobriety, being broke seems to be an advantage, with the odds on someone returning to a home with a well- stocked wine cellar from a treatment program staying sober being pretty low.
My financial low came when I had been sober for about five years and had to live in a pub I wouldn't have drank in. I actually found that I rather enjoyed that time and lost most of my fear of economic insecurity when I found that it wasn't really something to be feared.
There was a time about ten years ago when my brother and I were notified that we would inherit some money from a great uncle in Sweden, but it was about a year before we found out how much. Thinking that it could be millions instead for the $US3000 it turned out to be, I got to thinking about what I would do if rich. About all I could come up with was that I might fly first class to places I don't really want to go to anyway, as I actually prefer a fairly simple life.
But after years in Japan, being underworked and overpaid, I was able to move here to Tasmania to retire at 58. The last year has not been kind to my savings, but I still have more than enough for my simple needs, and about the only question is how much will be left in the bucket when I kick it, something I'm not really very concerned about.
Not having enough money for basic needs is a real problem, but I believe it is true that it can't buy happiness. I sometimes am reminded of J.D. Rockefeller who was asked, when he was the richest man on earth how much money it would take to make a man happy and answered, "A little bit more."
The best things in life aren't things. |