Money, money, money, must be funny, in the rich man's world…

I was confused to hear a moving speech by a friend recently the subject of which was “I want to make money, loads of money. People are doing nothing and making money.”

And it confused me because I started to think why does this person want to make money?

Now don’t give me the ‘is she mad’ look. Of course everybody wants to make money isn’t that obvious? And I know the argument that money buys comforts and to be happy in a country like India you need comforts around you all the time. Do we hear Mukesh Ambani complain of the traffic or Mr. Mittal crib over the power cuts?

But what I was wondering was if this friend wants more money just because everybody else wants it or is there a clear plan as to when, what and how. I think he was doing what most of us do, which is, we have a tendency to follow the brood, without reason and devoid of logic. We think it's the brood and masses are not wrong, so simple isn't it, just follow it. So now I request you to give a minute and honestly think of all the situations that made you happy in the last 10 days.

Your time starts now…

Think, think, think…think hard. Yes, made you happy in the last 10 days.

Good. How many were situations where money made you happy?

As for me, I have definitely been happy on my birthday last week but my happiness didn’t have anything to do with (you guessed it right) anything material. I had many friends and family wishing me and I was truly overwhelmed. I had my facebook page flooded with wishes and all of it had nothing to do with money. I was so happy to interact with some really expressive children who, unfortunately, cannot communicate due to a physical limitation but they communicated with me beautifully. And guess what, no money for that as well. I went for TEDx and heard some really good speakers and that made me a happy person. At work, one of our campaigns got a really good response and I was happy for that (and yes I get my salary but even if the campaign would have been a failure, I’d still be paid).

So perhaps you could argue that buying something really expensive had made you happy, the feeling to be able to afford. Of course it does. But my problem with that and especially in these times is that things are changing so constantly. Just as we are reveling in the pleasure of our new possession there’s already a new edition to make us feel bad. There is no end there…

And my second question is “how much money do you want to make?” and if you are able to give me a number, excellent.  But once you get that number, assure me you won’t change it and ask for more. And also, you won’t ask for health, luck or protection. And you will tell me how did you get to that number and also your plan with that money and will you guarantee me that you will be happy forever after you make that money and not be chasing another brood?

As we grow, our mind gets cluttered. So perhaps it’s simple. I think we just need to unclutter, sit back and reconnect with some basic meanings of happy, health, want, need, desires and money (as individuals and not as a brood) and rethink about what we really want and in what proportions.

A place called home...

Words confuse me.

No, seriously.

Now take for example the word home. The dictionary throws meanings like shelter or, interestingly enough, the place in which one's domestic affections are centered or as they famously say, home is where the heart is. Even a tree can provide shelter but that's not home. And the plush room of an ultra-luxurious 5 star hotel will definitely be a place where my affection will be centered, domestic or undomestic I don't care, but that's not home either.

So in my quest to understand the meaning of home, I asked myself: At the end of a tiring day, where is it that I look forward to reach?

Obviously, the answer is home but why?

Do I have a spa waiting at home or a red velvety carpet that will lead to a king sized squashy bed and soft pillows that will devour me along with my fatigue? I wish there was but none of that is the reason I want to reach home.

So first of all, when I head back home, I look forward to see an affectionate and smiling face with whom I can discuss my tiny and honest details of the day. It’s the space where I can be with no formalities or rules. The place which is comfortable and soothing and not necessarily huge, plush or has the most expensive interiors which I can exhibit to my friends and foes. If that was the case, the best home would be the premium luxury deluxe hotel rooms. Remember after a long vacation, we still look forward to come home. It's a place where I find relief, the same kind of relief which I find after applying an ice pack on a burnt finger or after having received an unexpected bank interest when am almost broke.

I now understand that home is a place of peace, relief and comfort irrespective of the number of rooms or the exquisite and costly interiors. It's a place where we feel grounded and content. We create a home and cannot buy it. It is not a hotel and it needn't be a palace. If there is no peace, comfort or relief, even the most spacious and opulent homes will feel like a prison and we will just keep running away from it either for frequent and relaxing holidays or in search of better homes.