Priceless

Money stresses me out. Okay, there, I admit it.

Yeah, and who isn’t stressed about money? Monks living on top of a mountain? Even they need to eat, right?

This recession has forced me, and many of us, to re-examine our relationship with money. But to be totally honest, I’ve always had a confused relationship with the topic.

Sometimes I’m a budget conscious restrictor, and other times, I’m a spendthrift permitter. I’ll go on a shopping binge or spend tons of money on eating out because at that moment I just want to have fun. And then I’ll feel guilt and self-loathing for spending carelessly during a tough recession the week after, tightening my belt and shutting off lights after people (okay, I don’t feel bad about that). And then I’ll spend carelessly again.

Money seems equal to living life to the fullest in my world – some of the time. You need money to travel, go to the Opera (not that I do that), buy clothes, eat out at fine restaurants, live in a furnished home (only some of the rooms in ours are), and so on…

I started looking at this topic around five years ago as a place of self-growth potential, and I’ve contemplated my relationship with money even more this past year. I already know the source, the messages I have heard and adopted as my own. I already examined what prosperity really means to me. I know that the key to prosperity is to create your own inner prosperous vibe – which you can do through gratitude. I also know that the stress doesn’t serve me. It affects my health and well-being.

And yet the pattern continues. So this morning, I meditated and wrote in my journal, a habit that I am formalizing as a part of my daily routine. And I’d like to share what I found to be an enlightening moment with all of you.

I read an Oprah.com article a few months ago, “10 Practical Ways to Increase Your Abundance” by Robert Holden. I tackled exercise #3, “Money: I have a healthy relationship to money.” The exercise tells us to list 10 things that are priceless that money can’t buy. I came up with 15. Here they are:

• Love
• A sense of well-being
• Balance
• A healthy attitude
• Peace
• Security and safety
• Gratitude
• Connection to spirit
• Natural beauty
• Happiness
• Nature
• Connection to my authentic self
• Prosperity and abundance
• A smile
• A compelling story!

I think that most of us know these things logically, but I know that I can lose sight of them when going through the day-to-day motions of life. I’m sure many of us do. When an unexpected bill arrives, or when there are challenges at the workplace, or when I really want to go on that trip or buy something for the house. Thinking of how rich I am with happiness is not the foremost thing on my mind.

But taking the time to journal or meditate, writing lists like the one above, helps me remember that I’m already rich.

Want to help me add to the list? Send me your thoughts on things that are priceless that don’t cost a dime!