My friend’s cousin has it all.Or at least she seems to.She lives in a beautiful mansion in Oceanside. She and her husband are both nurses so they make a six-digit annual household income. She and her husband own BMW cars. She also has a baby.

But she’s not happy.

Despite all these luxurious material possessions, she isn’t satisfied. As a nurse she works overtime and doesn’t get the opportunity to enjoy the material possessions she’s been able to purchase. After years of hard work and dedication to school, she finds herself stuck with an overwhelming work schedule that limits the time she gets to spend at home with her child.

We live in a consumer culture that tells us that we need to have ‘things,’ like big houses and fancy cell phones, to be happy.

In the end, though, do these things really make us happy? Does owning a huge house with giant plasma screen televisions make us happy? When a person gets to the point that they can afford expensive items, they’re probably like my friend’s cousin, who doesn’t have the time to take advantage of these things. And if they do have the time to sit at home and watch movies, and really enjoy what the huge house has to offer, is that really the way a person wants to spend their life? At home, if not working?

While this isn’t the case for everyone, it seems like it for a lot of people: come home from work and enjoy life inside the house.

Instead of our aiming to buy luxurious items, it might be a better investment to spend on experiences, like traveling and seeing the rest of the world. Unlike material possessions, those can’t be taken away from people. Helping other people who need it is also another way to go, and the good feeling that comes from helping others is another thing that can’t be taken away.