The curse of consumerism

This quote from Brian McLaren about consumerism vs contemplation, captured an idea that's been nagging at the edges of my consciousness for a long time :

"one acquires more and more things without taking the

time to ever see and know them, and thus one never truly

enjoys them. One has without truly having. The consumer

is right - there is pleasure to be had in good things, a

sacred and almost unspeakable pleasure, but the

consumer wrongly thinks that one finds this pleasure by

having more and more possessions instead of possessing

them more truly through grateful contemplation."

I know I'm a victim of this trap - caught in a cycle of materialism and acquisition, without really taking the time to savour the things which I am lucky enough to acquire.

For me the clearest example of this is music. When I was in my teens and had no money, when I was able to save and buy a CD it was a big deal to me - I'd listen to that CD over and over again so that I would know much of it by heart (and that includes some pretty crappy CDs now that I look back) - nowadays I probably buy more CDs, but get to listen to them once or twice while doing something else at the same time (like driving, or reading, or computer stuff) so I never really get to know and savor the good thing that I have got. And the same goes for many other things in my materially blessed existence. Perhaps there is something to be said for a more ascetic, contemplative lifestyle, where one can take the time to truly appreciate and contemplate the simple things which God has provided for us...