The best things in life. This statement alone speaks volumes as it is, in fact, an incredibly difficult question to answer. “Why is this so?” you may ask. This is because the answer is not set. There is no right or wrong answer. If you would open up the dictionary, there is no literal translation of ‘the best thing in life’, because to everyone, the best thing in our life completely differs to the person next to us. What is it you treasure most? Money? Family? Social status? Could it be that brand new Mercedes S-Class, it’s jet-black sleek and shiny body sparkling from afar?  Maybe it’s waiting up all night, just for Mummy and Daddy to come home from a long day’s work and tuck you into bed. Could it be hoping that that monthly supply of food comes quick from the UN, just so rice and sand wouldn’t be the main course for dinner again? There are 6.8 billion people on the planet Earth, and every single one of them have different priorities. So the question that remains my friends, is what are the best things in life?

            First of all, are the best things in life materialistic? It is said money can buy happiness. Unfortunately, the philosopher who thought up this celebrated idiom is sadly incorrect. However, if you think of it, money can actually buy some form of happiness. If a brand new car is what makes you happy, money is the solution. In recent surveys, it is shown that rich people are in fact happier than the poor. Needless to say, what sort of happiness does money buy? Of course, it can get you that brand new Xbox you’ve been eyeing for a while. Or how about that glamorous Prada handbag that all the popular girls have been buying lately? Money can even buy you popularity! See, what money buys for you are materialistic things. Sure, anybody would be happy to receive a brand new Xbox or a Prada handbag. I would be ecstatic (for the Xbox, not the handbag)! But what happens when you run out of Xbox games? When Prada opens up a new range of handbags? You would have to buy more games; shop for new handbags, etc. In the end, you are caught in a vicious, relentless cycle which causes you to keep wanting more and more and more. Still though, money does buy some form happiness. Nevertheless, this happiness is not permanent. It is a shallow, cheap and short-termed happiness that satisfies a person temporarily; a hollow shell of true happiness. In my opinion, money and materialistic things are definitely not the best things in life. If it is to you my friends, I have to tell you, you’re missing out on a lot in life.