This topic of money and happiness reminds me of an Ancient Greece story that I love to read in my childhood, it’s a story of a man named Midas who can turn everything he touched into gold. Here is the story:
Midas was once an ordinary king. One day one peasant from his kingdom brought a satyr (half-men, half-goat creature) named Silenus, who was wandering away drunk to his palace. Midas recognized him and treated him hospitably, entertaining him for ten days and nights with politeness, while Silenus delighted Midas and his friends with stories and songs.
On the eleventh day, he brought Silenus back to Dionysus (Wine God who rule over satyr as well) in Lydia. Dionysus offered Midas his choice of whatever reward he wished for. Midas asked that whatever he might touch should be changed into gold.
Midas rejoiced in his new power, which he hastened to put to the test. He touched an oak twig and a stone; both turned to gold. Overjoyed, as soon as he got home, he ordered the servants to set a feast on the table. "So Midas, king of Lydia, swelled at first with pride when he found he could transform everything he touched to gold; but when he beheld his food grow rigid and his drink harden into golden ice then he understood that this gift was a bane and in his loathing for gold, cursed his prayer." Worse come to worse, he accidentally touched his daughter and she turned into golden statue.
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Now, Midas hated the gift he had coveted. He prayed to Dionysus, begging to be delivered from his curse. Dionysus heard his prayer, and consented; telling Midas to wash in the river Patoclus. Then, what ever he put into the water would be reversed of the touch.
Midas did so, and when he touched the waters, the power flowed into the river, and the river sands turned into gold.
Moral value of this story is that money is a blessing, but at same time it also become a curse. When we are too focused on our jobs, we sometimes neglect people we loved, in the end it we’ll end up losing them as King Midas lost his daughter.
I love how you used a myth to connect to your argument. You showed a personal connection by saying how you read the story as a child. You paraphrased the story well, but I would have liked to see more of your reflection and less of the story. The reflection was only a small paragraph at the end and it had interesting content, so I would have liked it to have been longer.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy the way you integrated the Midas story into your passion topic. This reminds everyone that happiness does not revolve around wealth and riches. I am very intrigued in your topic and look forward to reading your next blog post.
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