Jesus and Buddha both tried to show us that the desire for external things is what creates most of our unhappiness in life. Buddha said, "The world, indeed, is like a dream and the treasures of the world are an alluring mirage! Like the apparent distances in a picture, things have no reality in themselves, but they are like heat haze." Jesus also said "Do not set up for yourself things that rust and moth can corrupt, but set up your treasure in heaven." So what does this mean? Do you have to give up everything? No, but understanding that this world is in a constant state of flux and that as my father used to say "You can't take it with you" is liberating. And that having a better understanding about what wealth really is can keep you from becoming depressed if things don't work out the way you planned. But the truth is that you have an incredible treasure just waiting for you to find and spend. And that treasure is you. Think about your eyes, how miraculous they are. Light bounces off objects around you creating shadows, depth and the experience of this amazing sphere we find ourselves clinging to. And your awareness, one of the greatest treasures you could possibly have. To see and perceive and too look to hold thoughts and feelings that gives you the experience of joy. This is what the great teachers pointed to. We have an incredible treasure trove of gifts; eyes, ears, nose, mouth, skin, consciousness, thought, dreams. All these things are yours. We have become distracted from this great treasure we are born with and we spend it unwisely. But now we can invest our whole being into the experience of life. Don't look with your beliefs or opinions today…instead look with your eyes. Listen with your ears not your mind.