Can money buy eternal happiness? I remember the days when I would sit with my neighbors and do silly things like make mud pies, dress up like it was Halloween on the hottest day in August and make racecars out of cardboard boxes and old skateboards. Those were the best days of my life. I didn’t rely on money to buy me an apple pie because I was content with my home made mud pie. I didn’t want to go out and buy new expensive costumes because I liked to mix and match my old ones. Lastly I didn’t want to ask for a remote control car because making it was the best part. Money was inexistent to me, nothing more than a green piece of paper.
There are many people in our world that live and breathe on the belief that money can buy anything and everything, including happiness. Think about it. We have grown up in an era that revolves around our social class. Kids in school are always asking: “Does he/she have a big house?”and “Is that name brand?”. If we aren’t wealthy then we’re at the bottom of the food chain. Unfortunately, many people believe that this way of life doesn’t allow them to be happy. Of course, being poor is not the ideal life, but each and every one of us still has the same opportunities and abilities to achieve eternal happiness.

Children, the least educated of us all, use their imagination to live out things that are nearly impossible to the rest of us. It sounds strange to hear but because they are the least educated in our society, they don’t need money to fulfill their lives. Their imagination allows them to be the happy rambunctious, little devils they are. Like Alexander Pope said, “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.” I believe that true, eternal happiness comes not from money, but from yourself and others. The feeling of being loved is the best feeling in the world it’s like that sip of ice cold lemonade on a hot summer day. Knowing that someone truly cares for us, give us that warm fuzzy feeling inside. To me, trying to buy eternal happiness is like trying to touch the ceiling in your kitchen without jumping, close but no cigar.

I believe in the statement that money cannot buy eternal happiness strongly because I grew up in a small loving family that does well financially but is definitely not considered rich. I guess people would call us “average”- not the John and Kate plus 8 kind of family. My brother and I have been provided with everything that we need and many of the things we want. Since third grade though, I have attended private school. In private school you don’t find many poverty-stricken kids or families. Since I was nine years old my life has included some people who believe that money can buy happiness. Thankfully, my parents made it a point to keep me and my brother rooted in the fact that true happiness is in the heart and not in how much loot you have in your back pocket.

Everyone has their own definition for happiness, but if you asked for mine I would tell you that happiness is that exact moment when your heart skips a beat and butterflies fill your stomach knowing that there is someone out there that you can trust, that will keep you safe and that will love you for who you are. So, can money buy eternal happiness?