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In the pursuit of material things, the existence of the soul is forgotten.

     Material possessions are always before us, and in our pursuit, we move too fast, leaving our souls far behind.

    I remember when we were decorating my house, I was only ten years old! I always wondered, why do we need such a big wardrobe for two rooms? Now look at it, it's crammed full. Yet I still feel that compared to my peers, I have far fewer clothes. Actually, if I threw away half of them, life probably wouldn't be a problem. So, what's the point of this wardrobe?

    Modern people are always used to paying with credit cards. Rather than calling credit cards a convenient payment method, it's more like a fire that makes us increasingly blindly satisfy our desire for material things. Remember last year's Singles' Day? The transaction volume of 300 million yuan was astonishing. Like buying things at the school supermarket, at first I used my card, and I always felt like I wasn't spending my own money. Three hundred yuan was gone in no time. Later, I didn't use my card for a semester, and I probably didn't even spend a hundred yuan. Does a credit card really have such magic that it makes us feel like the money in it isn't our own? And the emerging overdraft cards are even more obvious; they seem to give you money, but once you spend it all, you have to pay it back! The government even quoted Barack Obama as saying this is an economic stimulus plan—can this country's situation be compared?

    There's an old question: If your house caught fire, what would you take? Clothes? You have a set, no need for now; Photo albums? You have them on social media, won't take them in a disaster; Money? In your bank account, you can report it lost for profit. Since you don't need anything, it only means that material possessions have taken over your life, but your soul is nowhere to be found.

    Material possessions cannot save your soul. Over time, you'll feel tired of things in your home. Maybe you should replace the appliances, the sofa, etc.? Alas, not long after, you'll feel tired of them again. Frequently changing material possessions only makes you dependent on them, leading you further and further away on the journey of materialism, until your soul is lost. When one day, a great disaster strikes, all material possessions are gone, and what will happen to someone whose soul is gone?

    Thoreau had a profound saying: "Simplify, simplify completely." Multiply your soul, subtract from your life. Only then will your soul draw ever closer. Material possessions are not essential; what is needed is the soul. If you pursue material things, is your soul still your own?

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