This roller coaster that we are all on at the moment is full of stomach turning moments.  What will happen next, will the bottom drop out from whence we thought it had already gone  - where do we all end up in this tilt a whirl of economic adventure?

As I've mentioned before, I live in an area that is especially hard hit.  I've had many conversations with the people who sit in the midst of the meltdown and what it clear to me is that those will survive it best are the ones who do not give up hope.

Perhaps this is one of the golden opportunities that sometimes smack us upside the head.  

It is a good time to asses what in life if truly important, time to take a look and see if it is in fact wise to live on debt.  Is it wise  to consume goods and services which we  cannot pay for?  Maybe it is finally time for people to stop borrowing against tomorrow.

Is it possible that Americans could learn again the difference between need and want?  Perhaps it is time for us to become conscious of the true cost of our choices.

I hear comments about people saving more than usual - that this is in fact holding up our recovery.  Yes, I would agree with that to some degree.  But please, let us not shift back into negative savings.  It is time for us to shift our paradigm and our economy and realize that it is not wise to spend our every dollar.  It is not wise in a financial or a spiritual sense.  The very act indicates our lack of hope in tomorrow and our under appreciation of the greatest gifts that life has to offer.

Life has very few guarantees.  If we're fortunate, we become enlightened on this journey.  We learn to love our fellow man and have compassion for the struggles that surround us.  And in so doing, we learn to do the same for ourselves.  Isn't that the very best that we can have in this life?

From my balcony that sits amidst the sea of humanity.

The Urban Cliffdweller