Contentment

I’ve been pondering the idea of contentment which seems to be a very elusive state of being.  When one observes the grasping greed of people in the public (and not so public) eye it would appear that there is never enough of anything for some people.  Closer to home I think about what it takes to make me happy and one factor is in the forefront.  Security.  Once a person can feel secure then other things seem to fall more easily in to place. 

       So what is security?  Obviously financial security is a big part of it and again, the measurement is different for everyone.  But if a mortgage is paid for and there is a little bit of savings (just a little) then I feel secure enough not to fear being fired from my job.  There is another kind of security, though, and that is knowing that we live in a country that is essentially safe from global hostility, from famine and a narrowness of mind that is not that far from our borders.  So far our country functions in a “normal” way but I do sometimes wonder what is in store for us.

       Our collective moral compass does not seem to have a true north and it seems to me that we have swung from extreme to extreme when it comes to governing those morals, principles and the sense of what is right and wrong.  For instance, we were discussing infidelity amongst our political leaders and while I’ve often said that I don’t think being divorced should be a cause for not voting for someone I realize that if a person cannot be faithful to their partner they are missing an essential kind of self control.  Fidelity has been a fundamental linchpin in our western fabric of life with historically good reasons for making it so.  Is it relevant today?

       So contentment comes from financial security and country security but that is only the exterior part of being content.  Inner contentment is a medley of what is right in one’s life, the even flow of family life, being accepted for who you are, feeling fine with the work that you do whether it’s a piece of writing, a knitting project, or the job you do at work.  I’ve noticed that while I am generally satisfied and content with my work, if someone expresses their own dissatisfaction with work I can sometimes become sympathetically anxious on that person’s behalf.  It’s a tiny bit of “mob mentality” operating which I find myself feeling uncomfortable about.

       So I ask you, are you content?  And do you know why you are?