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How important is money? Does it buy happiness? I happen to have had the experience of seeing extreme wealth 1st hand. And what I saw was not complete happiness. I speak of my sister, she is 8 yrs older than me. When she met her ex she was 21. He was a multi-millionaire and my sister soon was enjoying the benefits of being his girlfriend. They were together for 12 yrs. Through that time, my sister had numerous luxury cars, prime real estate in different parts of the country. She had beautiful jewelry, expensive designer clothes, everyday was a holiday... In the end, my sister walked away with only the clothes on her back. She came back to the states, stayed with her girlfriend for a short time, got a job waitressing (her 1st job in 12 yrs),traveling by bus. Soon, she was lucky enough to buy a old car of her friends, thru another friend, she was able to rent a studio apt. It was hard, much harder than the life sh had left behind, but for the 1st time in 12 yrs- my sister was happy. Im trying to tie this to my real point of the discussion, bare with me.. I guess my point is, to me, money is something we need in order to live- for food shelter and clothes. But Im not really the type that is looking to be "rich". I believe more in love and family, having good friends. Those things are what make us rich. It isnt that way for everyone though. For my entire family, money isnt something we base our happiness on, EXCEPT for my grandmother. God bless her soul, I love her to death, dont know what I would've done without her. I am actually lucky to have her. Or...Am I???I say this because, over the years, as I've grown up, I've realized that her intentions, her motives, they stem from 1 thing, or the desire to have 1 thing- MONEY. Shes retired, she worked til she was 65 or so. She was married to my grandfather, who was in the Navy. He took good care of her, thought on his death bed, that he had set her up for when he was gone. It turned out that by the time he had died, gram had shopped through all of their savings. She wasn't completely selfish, they had helped my mother, my aunt, even my sister, buy cars before. If you really needed help, you could go to her for help. But at what cost? Over the years, her help, her love, has proven to be quite costly. I hadnt ever asked her for help with anything. I've lived on my own since I was 16. I've always worked and supported myself. Til a few years ago, when I split up with my sons father, I had no choice but to come back home. Off the top, I know that if I didn't have my son, she woud not have allowed me t move in. Nonetheless, I moved in. Not for free, we agreed on rent and I payed it as we arranged. But that is never the end. There is always something else. The water bill is 2 cents higher than last month, the gas prices went up-u owe her for that, too. If the fridge is open 2 long or 2 many times, u hear about it. Every piece of food you eat-makes you feel guilty somehow because you wonder if you owe her for it. I know that as we get older, this kind of thing comes naturally, to an extent!The reality is this, she will take your last dime and not think twice. If you can't pay ALL of what you owe, you better believe, she will expect you to pack your bags. Each day when we wake up, it is dependant upon how much money you've handed her, whether or not the day will be pleasant. My grandmother owns her home, she actually is paid to live in it. She gets paid monthly-her retirement, my grandfathers retirement, their social security, plus over $1000 in all from my mom, my aunt and I. She is not hurting for money. But I will end this with the reality as I know it...My grandmother would still demand the money, take every penny of it, even if she knew that I had SOLD MY OWN BODY to get it. Then, send me out again...as long as she was paid. How important is money in your family???