big purchases

I just got back from Micro Center with my friend Adam. He was purchasing a new MacBook today, and I got to go with him. It reminded me of how I have a love/hate relationship with big purchases. On one hand, I love to get that new big thing (like a new Apple computer, my Vizio 42" TV, and my wife's new Accord), but on the other hand, I hate spending that much money at one time. I always feel guilty ("think of all the starving children I could have fed" or "do you really 'need' this new ___________"), and I always wonder if I am making the best choice.

Then I take it out of the box (and getting my wife's Honda out of the box was no small chore), and all those feelings melt away as I hold that new thing in my hands and begin to play with it. It's like Christmas. And I realize how fortunate (or "blessed") we are in this day and age to be able to take new stuff out of a box and play with it. I bet going back only to our grandparents' generation, that we have opened more boxes of stuff by the time we are 16 then they did their entire lives.

So here are some lessons I am trying to learn from all this:
1. Have the dealer take your new car out of the box before you purchase it.
2. Appreciate all the things I get to have - enjoy taking it out of the box and be thankful for it.
3. Be content with that I have, so that new things are fun and special, not routine and expected. This one is hard for me.