“What if I didn’t?”

We are all guilty of wishing and wanting for more. Fantasizing about what it would be like if we won the lottery, got some huge unexpected promotion at work, had a long-lost relative that left us a substantial inheritance, etc. We love to think about how our lives would be different and supposedly better with more. It can be fun to do so, but there’s little value beyond some temporary escapism.

What if we asked ourselves, “What if I didn’t…?” What if I didn’t have my job tomorrow? What if I didn’t have my car tomorrow? What if I didn’t have my home tomorrow? What if I didn’t have my possessions tomorrow? Certainly, this reality would create an incredible inconvenience, but would it still be possible to feel happiness or joy? The answer depends greatly on how much you feel your job, car, home and possessions define you.

The purpose is not to wish for tragedy to strike, but rather offer a reality to ponder where the only possession we maintain is our reasoned choice. If we were to lose everything that we believed defined who we are, what we would choose to do with that reality? What would be important in that reality? In those responses lies the answer to all that’s truly important right here, right now.