Abundance and Change
Things are moving quickly
And yet we always see
A world of violence and sadness
That seems off to me
Things are getting better
Of that I could swear
In fact the stats are obvious
So something’s fishy here
The problem is attention
Sex and violence sell
All our guilty pleasures
Are driving us to hell
This is not religious
It’s just a simple fact
Yet even those we disagree on
With Google at our back
And so I find it funny
As we speed along
And solve the world’s big problems
That more don’t sing along
See, I see a world
One with constant change
One where poverty and pain
Are slowly stripped away
What’s the point of working
How will we self-define
When we’re in an age of plenty
And all we have is time?
But there’s a big problem
Sharing isn’t cool
I’d rather help myself
Than build a better school
The system isn’t happy
When we all find we are
I’ve got a great idea
How about a self-driving car
We’re actually pretty close
A sci-fi world they say
But Hollywood’s a problem
It’s always doomsday
What makes us fear change
Have you ever really thought
Maybe it is instincts
Maybe it is not
What makes you happy
Take a second to think
I sure as hell bet
It isn’t some fancy drink
The people most obsessed
With having something more
Are like those poor old farts
Running on the treadmill floor
That’s the race we live
Accumulating shit
Have you ever stopped
Just to think about it
Trading time for money
What a noble cause
To live your life searching
For a better set of bras
You think this funny
I’m sure that you do
How often do you upgrade your car
An iPhone counts too
Have you ever wondered
From where these instincts come
Marketing is sneaky
It makes you want some
We play on your desires
We make you feel like shit
All to sell a pair of headphones
And a warranty with it
I’ll bet you don’t believe me
That’s perfectly fine
But would you trade your child
For a Samsung Galaxy 9?
Of course not you say
That is just absurd
But 40+ hours a week
Your baby is just a turd
You pass him off to someone
You’ve got to pay the bills
But really when you think about it
Where are all the thrills?
Is it on your phone
Or just maybe at home
Could your life be more balanced
If you had a smaller home?
Now by all means work hard
That’s not the point at all
But consider what your trading
When you try to have it all
The happiest people you’ll find
Are often really poor
Happiness seems to be found
By not wanting more
But economics tells us
That consumption is good
There seems to be a conflict
To what we know we should
And why are things so messy
We always want more
More than is even possible
Without robbing your neighbor next store
Seems a bit short-sighted
Maybe that’s just me
But things that make you happy
Are based in unity
We’re social creatures
That’s what science says
So why is economics
Pulling apart our threads
The fabric of society
What a metaphor
To make a lot of money
We often need to whore
We trade time for money
Principles be damned
Shareholder value above all else
The Earth is getting slammed
We push away the problems
Numbers simplify
But we all know the truth
What happens when we die
What happens to our children
The world we leave behind
Maybe it is time to think
About our crazy grind
The world is getting better
We’re saving tons of lives
But could things be amazing
If we dared to try
So think about the market
Maybe we’re getting close
To redefining success
As more than fancy coats
Things are getting better
But much worse too
The only question I have
Is how this post affects you
I don’t have the answers
We can’t always be right
But with hard problems about the future
It makes sense to give them light
Things are getting better
But can it be sustained
If we don’t address
Our massive baggage train
Think a little harder
What matters most to you
Are your actions reflecting
The things that you hold true
Follow your heart
Not what you’re supposed to do
How would your life be different
Don’t you wish you knew
Imagine what would happen
If we’d all do the same
It’ll never be perfect
But we’d play a better game
Humanity’s a team
Forget what fearmongers say
We all have the power
To see a better day
The thing about abundance
It is contagious, I swear
If you are willing to dream
The world may learn to share
Just think about an Uber
You get from here to there
But easily the best thing
Is better, cleaner air
And things are quickly changing
Some people start to see
The excessiveness of life
Cannot be multiplied by three
And that’s just what would happen
As many countries grow
We need change
To let the masses know
If you remember just one thing
I hope that it is this
You are powerful beyond measure
And never be just Swiss
Neutral isn’t neutral
The flow will make you go
You can change the world
But first you need to know.
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