You have seen the headlines. So many celebrities die young or fall from fame and end up penniless and you read their stories to find out if it was a character fault, corrupt agents, disinterested promoters or bad luck. Success and fame, and success without fame, brings with it challenges just like any other path in life and you look at those who manage to stay successful and you see they have all given up something; if not many things.
From partial marriages, broken relationships with children, dysfunctional lifestyles, every successful person compromises on some parts of their lives to remain successful – to keep that business going, to keep that name in lights because all success comes at a price.
We are the most successful animal the planet has seen. As successful as the dinosaurs in the extent to which we rule the Earth and more successful than any others at understanding the universe and changing our environments to suit our needs. Yet we do not believe our success means we lose anything, but we do. We lose the right not to care, we lose the right to be indifferent, we lose the right to turn away from the insalubrious results of our success.
If we continue to be so successful without addressing the imbalance we represent to nature, we will be as dysfunctional as any celebrity and we will suffer in like degree. Even to losing all that we have.
Very true, Daniel. The phrase ‘counting the cost’ came to mind as I read it.