Reflections on Tuesdays With Morrie (pp. 80-130)
“‘Mitch,’ he said, laughing along, ‘even I don’t
know what “spiritual development” really means.
But I do know we’re deficient in some way. We are too involved in materialistic things,
and they don’t satisfy us. The loving
relationships we have, the universe around us, we take these things for
granted’” (p. 84).
Morrie emphasized the importance of individual spiritual
development. The words “spiritual
development,” through their frequent usage, have become opaque and vague. This phrase has become a buzz word which
people throw around haphazardly hoping it will germ some idea of its true
meaning. Even Morrie says he is unsure—with
the many definitions—what the phrase really means. Nevertheless, he knows that it is vital to
mankind. His assumptions appear to
suggest that it signifies our dependence on love and an appreciation for things
around us.
Morrie frequently comments on “material
possessions.” Mitch even notices this,
he cannot recall a new object purchased by Morrie in their time together. There is, in America, an existential
attachment to stuff. Indeed, “things are
in the saddle and ride mankind.”[1] An 18 year-old girl from Pakistan, who
recently moved to California, wrote in the Huffington
Post, “Unfortunately,
the American dream is becoming more and more materialistic. I guess it was
always a bit materialistic, but when I look at America today, I see a nation
obsessed with shopping and buying unnecessary products. Previously, people
aspired to have a nice house in the suburbs with a couple of cars. Now, there
is no end to the products that people want: the latest IPhone, expensive cars,
designer bags—the list is endless. The American dream revolves around luxury
goods for most people.”[2]
What does this communicate regarding
our “spiritual development” as Morrie put it?
Humankind seeks satisfaction.
Everyone carries the innate desire to feel needed, to feel wanted, to
feel appreciated. This accumulation of
articles of clothing, the obsession with odds and ends, and the charm of cars,
all these are pseudo-satisfaction.
Things give immediate rise.
Things are visual clues to our importance. The sooner America realizes their epidemic,
the sooner we can address the problem.
[1] Emerson, Ralph W. "Ode, Inscribed to
William H. Channing.", accessed June 18, 2013, http://www.emersoncentral.com/poems/ode_inscribed_to_william_h_channing.htm.
[2] Khurram, Shanzeh. 2013. "Is the American
Dream Becoming Too Materialistic?" Huffington
Post, Feb. 17.
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