student corner Does money make you happy?
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By Kim Woo-sun
Nowadays, people always talk about their hopes, especially about money. As the economy is getting worse, people feel nervous and say, "If I had enough money, I could be happier than now.”
But how? How can we be happier by possessing it? Do you have any detailed plan or wish-list? I have one. If I received a gift of money, I would buy seeds. There are three reasons for this: wisdom, contribution to the future and mental healing.
Firstly, I can get wisdom from them. Seeds become plants and they give me fruit and crops. Of course the process of growing a plant is very hard. I must water them regularly, and prepare for bad weather.
However, constant challenge provides recompense. And the moment when I get the reward for my efforts, I will feel accomplished.
By this experiment, I can learn the fact that what makes my life more valuable is the attitude, not giving up easily but endeavoring steadily.
As a consequence, I will be able to be positive about my life, bear up under misfortune, and become a person who sometimes staggers but never sinks.
Secondly, I can contribute to the future of the earth. As time passes, pollution issues are becoming more serious. Human’s excessive greed and avarice have covered the earth with gray smog.
Air, water and soil contamination have dimmed the future of the earth. We need to restore the damaged environment for us, our parents, and our sons and daughters.
In this situation, planting will be helpful because plants can purify the air by absorbing carbon dioxide and giving off oxygen.
Additionally it is a powerful method to check global warming. Putting things in perspective and doing at least one thing for the world means making somebody around you happy, and that is equal to my happiness.
Finally, I can have mental healing. When you breed something, you must give them your attention and affection. And by this process you can be happier. This may sound odd because many people think just giving love is not profitable for the giver. Actually the human's brain produces more happiness causing substances when they give, rather than receive.
There is interesting research at the American National Institute of Health which can support this fact. Researchers gave participants only two options _ having a lot of money or donating some.
After the participants made a decision, researchers examined their brain by means of an MRI scan. Surprisingly, those who chose “donating all of the money” produced more activation in their brain as when feeling happiness.
In conclusion, I think buying seeds is a good choice because it reminds me of the wisdom of life, gives me a chance to care for the earth, and makes me feel better.
Luxury jewelry, necklaces, rings and cars may seem appealing. However, objects, which have a colorful shape and nothing inside, can't remain for long.
What is really valuable is what can give us visible things and also, “invisible things.”
Make the right choice. Your purpose may not provide “money,” but the way to become “happy.”
The writer is a first-year student at Daeil Foreign Language High School in Seoul.