Feeling Useless

A friend always complains. He works from 8 am to 9 am, even on Saturday. To get to the office at 8, he has to leave at 6 am. Indeed, the income is large. Insurance and benefits are also high.

However, he feels tired, does not have time to gather with family and friends. On holidays, he can only sleep, because he is very tired. He feels useless, because life is only a slave for a company.

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There are also other friends who complain. Tired of working for others, he began to build his own business. However, the business climate is not good. Profit slumped, even several times had to swallow losses.

Sometimes, he feels sorry for leaving the workforce. Business world is full of uncertainty. Sometimes it is profitable, sometimes it gets stuck. He also, often, feels useless.

Other friends don't have jobs. He spends time in front of a computer. Sometimes, just go out to buy food. He has long been unemployed, and desperately looking for work.

To build a business, he does not have capital, or guarantees for bank loans. His family is also reluctant to lend money. Finally, he can only get friends. Often, he feels want to suicide, because he feels no longer useful.

Useless

So, whatever we do, we will always feel useless? Even activists who give their lives to help others often feel useless. Feel unable to make substantial changes to improve the situation. So what is actually the meaning of "useful" for this context?

That is mean to making enough money. Having money to enjoy the time with family and friends. And being able to influence everything you want. This kind of view is widespread in our society.

This view is very unnatural. It was created by certain ideologies, namely the ideology of modernity which gave birth to modern capitalism and mental materialism. Modernity is thick with the characteristics of physical progress that you want to continue to achieve. The fruit is modern capitalism, which is a life full of unlimited accumulated economic benefits. Not surprisingly, modern humans become crazy people with money.

Everything is measured with money, from love, friendship to relationships with God. Placed in the right context, this view can give prosperity for the society. People who reject economic development will fall into poverty. However, when the money plays too strong, this view of modernity (capitalism and materialism) will damage human life. This acute, widespread and uncertainty is a sign of the damage.

Useful

Look in closer, our existence is naturally useful. Every second, we release carbon dioxide that is absorbed by plants to maintain its existence. Every second, our body is home to millions of bacteria and various other organisms. Not only that, even our feces become valuable fertilizer for plants.

When we smile, we give happiness around us. When we listen to friends who speak, we have released them for a moment from loneliness. The essentials, our existence is always useful, whether we realize it or not. This is an interrelated fact of all things in this life.

The concept of "useful" in the style of capitalism and modern materialism is clearly a misguided understanding. He created futile suffering for human life. This also encourages people to be late heroes. Who plunge into politics for money and power, but hide it for noble reasons. Towards the legislative and presidential elections later, we can easily witness the presence of this late hero.

So, we don't need to feel useless. It is a misguided thought that causes useless suffering. What is needed, to live clearly from time to time, then do what can be done. If there are people or things that need help, then we help. Otherwise, we enjoy life with bright sunlight and fresh air.