The Joneses

 I recently watched a movie titled “The Jones” A movie about a too “perfect” family that moves into the perfect neighborhood, that resembles the perfect definition of Affluenza. Why is it so important that we keep up with the Joneses? Why do we put ourselves in dept, hurt those we care about most? Labels consume us in our over consumption and capitalistic society. We crave recognition and are willing to pay the price; but at what price? We wear the label that we paid top dollar for, yet the designer should be paying us, we are advertising their name; the athlete gets paid to impress us with the designer goods so we become the label whore. The portmanteau, Affluenza is the perfect term for our over consumerism. My nine-year-old child proudly expressed to me that if we don’t recycle we will ruin the ozone and the sun will burn us like lava. How do we recycle ourselves? Is bigger really better? My heart is who I am not the name printed across it, or the car I drive.