In Anxiety II, I described our fear of losing material security. But people in my age-group have another kind of fear, too. I also detect it among very successful and prosperous singles.
Some of the people I know drive really big cars. Always the latest model. Some of them are very successful, in economy and politics. They glide from vacation to vacation. One trip is followed by the next. They go by guided tour or individually planned to South America or Thailand, and then they rent a camper for vacationing at the Greek coast. In between, they spend some time in Austria and Switzerland in order to enjoy the beautiful country. Or else on a small sailing yacht in Italy or France.
They enjoy life at the fullest and leave a high CO2 footprint. If they are ever burdened by a bad conscience, they pacify it by donating to charity. Children or nephews are non-existent. If at all, relationships follow the pattern “living single together”, or else do not work out. But the hairline goes south, more and more of the teeth are artificial ones, the body weakens and the loneliness gets more and more obvious each year.
I also know the “poor old mother”. She never had much and has no reason to be afraid to lose much. The only thing she might be worried about is her grandchildren and she is delighted to have them visiting.
RMD
(Translated by EG)
P.S.
🙂 I do, however, not believe that the poor singles (they were not mentioned in this article) are any happier than the rich.
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