The bottle of ashes on my desk

I ONCE witnessed a fire that originated in a small house, a few yards away from my home.
When the fire cooled, there were ashes everywhere. It looked pure and organic, the smell was imposing. As I stood there after the scene ended, I took a bottle and filled it with some of those ashes. I was enticed to take it with me because of thoughts it sparked.

I thought of life and its purpose and pondered the fact that one day we will all return to ashes. I placed this bottle of ashes on my desk and every time life gets difficult, it reminds me from whence we came and where we will inevitably return. This, I will discuss in the context of money and power.

It is a good time to remind ourselves of the sage words of Abraham Lincoln, who remarked, ‘Nearly all men can stand adversity, but you want to test a man’s character, give him power’. When the sirens wail, the red carpets are bestrode and the supplicants fawn at your every move, how many humans can withstand this circumstance without losing their humbleness?

Not many, and it is for this reason, I suggest the bottle of ashes on the desks of powerful humans. By no means am I suggesting that this is the panacea for the age-old disease of falling victim to the trappings of power; I am simply saying it can be a solution for some. This ought to remind the powerful that no one is larger than life and it is a universal fact that we must one day return to ashes.

The thought or idea that you can do what you want or take what you want without being subject to punishment is too strong to resist by the average person. It takes extraordinary character and Buddhist discipline to withstand the allure of those temptations. In the reverse, those who lack power, lecture and vilify the ones who mismanage power, should be asked: what would you do if you experience power?

But certainly Mr. Austin, what do you know about money and power? Great question, I have never fully experienced either of the aforementioned in its entirety, but I trust that if I do, the bottle of ashes on my desk will be my guide.

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