True Success

In a materialistic culture driven by the motto, "He who dies with the most toys wins," we sometimes lose sight of true and eternal values. I think Ralph Waldo Emerson had a much better attitude toward success:

To laugh often and much.

To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children.

To leave the world a better place.

To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.

This is to have succeeded.

As a Christian, I would add a spiritual dimension to that list, too,- To worship Christ in even our smallest chores. Beyond that I just can't improve upon his expression of sentiments.

I believe that when we approach death's door, we won't care if we drove a Mercedes or a Ford. We won't care if our clothes bore designer labels. We won't even care how many degrees we earned or accolades we received. I think we will care about how we treated our loved ones and the other people in our lives and if we lived with integrity. And if we know that we loved and lived honestly and are prepared to meet God, finally, face to face, then we will have achieved true success.