The thirty thousand dollar couch

Today, I read in the New York Times about a couple of people in Manhattan who were buying a $30,000 couch. This was to go into their multi-million dollar apartment. Here is a photo of a couch (in the background) that is worth uncountable dollars. This particular couch, located in a small town in northern California, is humble at first notice. It wasn't made by Italian artisans, but it is comfortable with pillows and throws made by real people that I know. The love in those petit point pillows took time and love and is worth millions of dollars. You can't see it here, but there are dog hairs embedded in the couch fabric. That dog, Stella, was worth maybe several million dollars in the love she gave her people. The coffee stains on the upholstery from many lovely family mornings, the history of babies, and the scratch marks from the cat are all here -the leavings of lives well lived on this very valuable couch. Worth a lot.

The person sitting in front of the very valuable couch is trying to repack a backpack after having spent the night on the couch. No doubt, during the night, she pulled her child onto the couch with her for food and comfort. All worth millions.

What in the world can we be thinking? Is it somewhere o.k. to spend such extravagant sums on decorating? Was the NYT doing a spoof? $30,000! This could fund a year in a private college, thirty field trips for a title one public school, thirty grants to people who need childcare so they can get going on their lives. $30,000! You could buy a nice trailer for a homeless family, you could buy a car that would make a difference for a family. You could fund a chair in a university, you could rescue a public library in a small town, you could, you could, you could..

These newly very rich people have no imagination. And why would they? (They are stuck in that children's game of MASH where one gets to live in a mansion and drive a Masserati.) In our times, we have never been asked to think about sacrifice or the good of others or the planet, thanks to Our Current Occupant in the Whitehouse. When you have people leaping from humble beginnings to great wealth, it seems they mostly gravitate to the swarmy tastelessness of showing off their wealth. We see the sports stars and celebrities building mansions and living in magnificent style.

I have a lovely life and I worry that our footprint is too large. I cannot be too judgemental. BUT! I do not have a $30,000 couch! Mine is worth way more than that as I cuddle my grandchild and read him a story, little dog warm between us.