{"id":1669,"date":"2024-03-04T09:59:18","date_gmt":"2024-03-04T17:59:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.meditationsbybilly.com\/?p=1669"},"modified":"2024-03-04T09:59:19","modified_gmt":"2024-03-04T17:59:19","slug":"everything-has-a-cost","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.meditationsbybilly.com\/the-daily-stoic\/03\/04\/everything-has-a-cost\/","title":{"rendered":"Everything Has a Cost"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
“So, concerning the things we pursue, and for which we vigorously exert ourselves, we owe this consideration \u2014 either there is nothing useful in them, or most aren’t useful. Some of them are superfluous, while others aren’t worth that much. But we don’t discern this and see them as free, when they cost us dearly.”<\/p>SENECA, MORAL LETTERS<\/em>, 42.6<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
We chase after a lot of things in life. The usual suspects, of course: nice cars, big homes, flashy clothes, the latest tech, the finer things. We know those things aren’t free \u2014 they certainly have big price tags.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But then some other<\/em> things seem to be low cost or even free, and we think that has no impact on our lives, so “why not, right?” We accumulate a ton of ‘stuff’ over the years, some of it seemingly free, but the truth is that everything has a cost<\/strong>. That’s what The Daily Stoic book is teaching us in the quote above.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There’s a cost in the space it takes up in our houses, in the extra storage we need \u2014 and sometimes rent \u2014 to hold all our stuff. There’s also a cost in terms of the mental space it takes up; the guilty feelings every time we see it (“oh gosh I should really throw that out”) or the obligation to keep things (“I can’t throw that ugly sweater away, my grandma gave it to me!”)<\/p>\n\n\n\n