• Spiritual and Emotional Themes

    The Treasure Within

    Freedom Versus Money When I was younger, I chose freedom over money. This meant I could control my life and my time. To earn a living, we must make sacrifices, but forty years ago, those sacrifices were not egregious. I could make ends meet by working part-time at a minimum-wage job. I had plenty of opportunity for rest, creativity, and friendships. These days, supporting myself is harder. I’m grateful that I was able to finish seminary and become a chaplain, for now I enjoy my work and make a decent salary, but it takes more time than work used to. Money and Work Not everyone, though, has the means to…

  • Spiritual and Emotional Themes

    Sex, Money, and Happiness

    Money Isn’t Everything, But It Helps Before I read about the crow, I thought I would make a simple statement about the connection between sex, money, and happiness. It seemed reasonable to open this column with the platitude: if we seek happiness in that which is impermanent, we will end up unhappy, for that is what I have to say. Yet the crow shifted my understanding a little bit. For instance, although a happiness that depends on human relationships or financial security is precarious, for those of us living in the United States during the early part of the twenty-first century, the sentiment ignores certain realities of living in a…