Before this century is half over, people will go to destination weddings on the moon. The phenomenon will give a whole new meaning to the term honeymooning. Selfies on the moon will become the new social media rage. Forget the Pyramids, the Eifel tower, and the leaning Tower of Pisa. If you really want to make your friends jealous, you’ll post a picture of yourself holding the Earth in your hand.
In 1776, the same year that Thomas Jefferson penned the Declaration of Independence, Adam Smith invented modern economics with a simple concept: humankind’s wants, he argued, were “unlimited.” No matter how much we have, we always want more. This human desire for more has seen us advance over the millennia from the wheel to the electric car. It has also caused mass depression. Wanting can be good. Wanting can also be bad. As individuals we walk through life imagining that if we had a bigger house, a better car, more money or a trip to Bali we could finally be happy.
Super rich people come in two flavors, those who set out to get rich and those who came to wealth as a by-product of other passions. People in the first group do not spend. The money is a goal unto itself. It is how they keep score. People in the second group include individuals like Bill Gates and Steve Jobs. Gates and Jobs set out with a fierce hatred of IBM and a desire to revolutionize the computer industry. They succeeded. The money was just a bonus. They say Steve Jobs was never truly happy. If $10.2 billion can’t buy happiness, then it just isn’t for sale.
The same year that Scottish philosopher Adam Smith invented modern economics, Thomas Jefferson sat hunkered over a writing desk in Philadelphia contemplating the meaning of life and trying to express the inalienable rights of man in a single sentence. He borrowed heavily from another Scottish philosopher, John Locke, who suggested that the essential duty of government was the protection of “life, liberty, and property.” Jefferson had a problem. Property had a very specific connotation in Colonial America. It meant slaves. He needed something else. His good friend, Benjamin Franklin had a thought. He suggested the immortal phrase, “the pursuit of happiness.”
Franklin got it right. Happiness is not a destination; it is a journey. Happiness is to be found in the passionate pursuit of a worthy goal. Suppose you spent your life in the pursuit, only to reach your goal. Would the achievement of the goal make you happy? Or would it leave you lost and wondering what to do next? It is said that at the age of 31, Alexander the Great wept “for there were no more worlds to conquer.”
The modern generation disdains material things in favor of experiences. They staunchly believe that they will find happiness in the accumulation of adventures. But experiences are still wants. Instead of wanting—be thankful for what you have: food, shelter, and especially friends.
Friendship matters. If you still want that selfie on the moon, I can tell you how to get it. I estimate that it will cost about $245,684.22 to make that trip in 30 years. If you can make 8% on your investments, you can save the money for the trip of a lifetime by putting away $164.85 a month for the next 30 years. If you want to take a friend, you will need to save twice that much.
When you go, remember me when you look at Buzz Aldrin’s footprint and make sure to check out the universe’s smallest and only known extra-terrestrial museum. It is roughly the size of a sim card and attached to the leg of the lunar lander from Apollo 12. It contains the work of six artists including Andy Warhol and Claes Oldenburg. Might even be worth taking a selfie.
Scott A. Grant is a local historian and author and a frequent contributor to the Recorder. By day, Grant is President of Standfast Asset Management.
