just a thought

Our culture is inundated with the pursuit of success and the achievement of our dreams (whatever they may be). This "pursuit of happiness" is generally done without any regard to the people whom we become in the process of the pursuit. We may be successful, as we measure success, and we may do what we've always wanted to do; we may accomplish our dreams and find ourselves dwelling in the manor of the prosperity of our deepest ambitions. But what kind of people will we be when all is said and done? More often than not, the pursuit of success leads to dehumanization, the deepening corruption of our hearts, minds, and strength (indeed, our very souls), so that that which is human within us is but a spark, an echo and a whisper, a faint voice heard in the quietest of moments: "What have we become?" What if we paid attention not to our dreams and ambitions, to what we want to make out of our lives, but, rather, to the kind of people we are and the kind of people we are becoming? What if, instead of making our dreams our greatest ambitions, we focused our energies on becoming more and more human: more loving, more just, and more merciful people? How would the world be any worse off? How would we be any worse off? Just a thought.