I think it really helped me appreciate my life more. If there are problems, I can overcome them. I enjoy what I have. I drink good wine instead of putting it off, I take time to have good meals. I appreciate my darling boyfriend when he comes home to me every night.
I was reading in Newsweek today that in America, the average family has **twice as much spending income** as we did in 1960. We assume that we "will have" things like washing machines, dishwashers, microwaves, color TVs, air conditioners, things that were all luxuries (or their equivalents were luxuries if they weren't invented yet). Back then families ate home cooked meals and saved their clothes. Nowadays we run out to eat and buy new clothes depending on the fashion of the day.
I think sometimes we have to look at just how much we DO have. Did you know that in Japan the average house for a family is the size of HALF OF ONE FLOOR of the average American home??