The richest man alive!

The Joys of Life.

This little painting consists of just a few lines and yet it flows as if music was pouring through its very heart. The interesting thing about this painting is not what you see but what is missing, what you do not see. The spaces and gaps are equally as important as the lines that are present. 

The eye of the viewer fills in all of the gaps and so for each of us, this painting will be different because of how we fill the gaps. is it male or female? is it dancing or skating on ice? What nationality is the person? So the questions go on.

The other day there in my study time mention was made of the of the Rich Young Ruler and his obviously wrong choice, and it set me thinking. 

No matter how much wealth he had, he could not, ride in a car, have any surgery, turn on a light, buy penicillin, hear a pipe organ, watch TV, wash dishes in running water, type a letter, mow a lawn, fly in an airplane, sleep on an innerspring mattress, or talk on the phone, he could not talk by text to people on the other side of the world.

If he was rich, then what am I?

Just before I get out of bed in the early hours of the morning I catch the news on the radio. This is followed by chat from various Asset Managers talking about the fluctuations of the stock exchange of bonds and assets, I listen little because it means little to me and I find the chat gobbledegook.  

How rich is rich? According to a survey by those same people who seem to know, the answer is £1 million to £5 million in assets. 

Investment managers sponsored the survey of people who stand to give or receive inheritances (median household assets: £500,000). Paradoxically, 55% of those whose assets ranged from £1 million to £5 million don't consider themselves wealthy. It also seems they have no comprehension whatsoever of what it means to not be so, "blessed." 

Sadly they are the ones who are governing our countries and make decisions that affect the lives of us all. 

The difference between playing the stock market and the horses is that one of the horses must win. 

Not that I would know much about either. 

So how am I rich? I am rich because I am surrounded by people who care for me. I am rich because I can walk from the door of the house I own and before three minutes I am looking at the mountains often enveloped in an ethereal beauty that takes my breath away. I am rich because I can listen to music that makes my inner being long to dance and sing. I am rich because above all I know I am loved.

I measure my wealth not by the things I have, but by the things I have for which I would not take money, no matter what the offer was. 

I thank you, my friends, for being a part of my wealth. have a great day. Remember it is not always what is there that makes the story but what is missing.