Isn’t simple life the best one?

Sure what is considered as simple is different from one to another. I had a ‘simple’ home cooking dinner, chicken, broccoli and mashed potato, plus white wine, chocolate, coffee, tea, ice cream and cocktails. However, both my friend and I agreed that it was a simple one and delightful. Sure for some other people would agree that it’s a simple one, but for some others would say it’s not that simple. There are millions people starving on earth, and they wander around with their massive bellies and extremely skinny figures (do you think anorexics would be jealous with them?), while my friend and I enjoyed our fine dinner.

I was toying with an idea about simple life. An office girl in office says that I am modest (read: I don’t wear jewelleries), so I considerably have a simple life (again the standard of simplicity is relative). Sometimes I think simple people are happier and richer than the rich. Look at my housekeeper for instance, he just got married, his wife is expecting a baby and they enjoy their lives. I bet he never thinks about how bloody silly the fiscal tax in Indonesia is when one wants to go abroad. He doesn’t have to think about bloody expensive phone bill I have every single month. The most important is he doesn’t bother with credit card bills.

On the contrary, even within this January, I have met 3 persons who got into trouble because of credit card using. They are suffocated to death (ok…exaggerating) because of the bills. These persons are well educated and have good jobs (one is even a very fine job). I don’t see why a person could have more than 2 credit cards, it’s useless. One out of these 3 persons, who has an OK job, even has 4 or 5 cards, and each card has given him credit limit about 8 times his monthly earning. Holy cow….isn’t it amazing, with 4 credit cards he could have credit limit around 32 times higher than his monthly earning. No wonder we tend to be pampered and reckless spending our money. It would take almost 3 years for him to pay it back to the bank. Worse, he becomes frustrated and annoys others, he needs some financial support to pay his bills. Hey…you’re the one who spends your money (or credit?) unwisely, I don’t even know what you have bought with it. Why should I lend you some money? No…no…no…I am not that nasty….I have learned to say something nasty with smile and makes it softer (well…haven’t done it well yet so far).

The question is simple…is it really effective, efficient and useful helping this kind of person? Or is it just makes it worse since then we (or I?) create faux security? If, one helps these persons to pay their bills this month, do you think they can handle it next month? Or they simply will ask you for more assistance? Then for how long one can pay others’ bills? It might end up like what I have faced yesterday, someone asked me to clear off his bills then he would pay me back little by little (sure without interest, it’s prohibited in Islam and I’m not interested either). Or like what I have faced today, another person out of these 3, asked me if I cannot assist him this month…what about on February? What about on March? Yes…and what about on April, May, June, July, and so and so. Indeed, they keep on shopping.