Needs Versus Wants

Do you ever have a day when the same theme keeps cropping up?  I had one today and the theme was needs versus wants.  Some people really struggle with this.  They buy too much.  They buy and return things frequently. They live beyond their means.  They regret the things they have purchased. Their own short-sightedness holds them back from achieving the goals they have for themselves.  They have overdrafts and bankruptcy and much unnecessary stress.  It is tough to decide what is an actual need and what is an actual want. I struggle too but not as much as most people.  I live below my means.  I have no credit card bills. I hardly ever return something and if I do it's because it's broken or unusable. I am one of the few Americans who has six months of living expenses available to me in the bank. Still I struggle.  We were talking about CSA's (consumer supported agriculture) and the Nowthen Farmer's Market.  I said it was hard to go there because there is so much stuff to buy.  My CSA food is prepaid but I always bring some cash because someone I know sells baked goods and I feel obliged to buy one. I don't need a baked good. No one really needs a baked good. Once in a while a baked good is fine to buy because it is a delicious food. But the other stuff I see there like the art carvings, the earrings, the sauerkraut, the aprons and hot pads and flowers and scarves and jewelry and spices and, oh, tons of stuff. I see this yard decoration of a flower on a metal rod that has a plate, a saucer, and a cup.  Inside the cup is a tiny little frog or a butterfly.  Art with colorful recycled materials is right up my alley. Now, I love that yard art but is that a need or a want?  My friend asked me, "Will it make you smile every night when you come home?"  Honestly I have to say no. Nothing would make me smile every night. I might say yes if it was Sam Elliot standing there by the garage door but yard art?  I might smile the first week but less frequently after that. The lesson I take away from all this is not to judge those who struggle with the balance of need versus want.