Cost? What Cost?

Absolutely everything.

Love. Success. Failure. Material Goods. Friendship. Integrity. The list could go on for quite a while, and you could easily draw the conclusion that nothing comes without a price.

Love costs your heart, but you gain one in return. Love can cost much monetarily in gifts, dates, and gasoline, but the final prize IS worth it. Falling in love takes time, and that is our most precious gift.

Success and Failure both cost. Both take time to appreciate. One returns your investment, while the other is an education. Both cost money and time, and both once spent, are gone. Family can be the high price of both outcomes if you lose touch with real success.

Material goods of course cost. Houses, cars, food, clothes, activities all cost dearly today and consume more of our income as our 'needs' increase.

Friendship costs.

But the value of friendship far outweighs the cost. The love and support that comes with true friendship is beyond price.

The same with integrity.

As I have previously discussed, integrity and authenticity is integral to true Godly character. The price of integrity can be high indeed, but at the end of the day, you can look yourself straight in the eye and not be ashamed of your actions.

In "A Midsummer's Night Dream", I wrote about the dangers of obsession. As the Lionel train surged towards the Train Man, he looked into his soul and found true value.

In our quest for our "Holy Grail", we can easily let ourselves become off balance. I can recall 2 times in my collecting life quite well.

I had received an email from a gentleman offering to sell me a complete collection of unread Lone Ranger novels with dust jackets in mint condition! The asking price, only $500 us. At this point I panicked, and sought to do what I 'had' to to buy these treasures. I tried to sell comics, books, and artwork. But, I could not raise the money. I couldn't even raise $30! I was out of balance, and my obsession cost me.

Another time, I received an offer to purchase a complete collection of Lone Ranger comics, starting at the first 1939 Hi Yo Silver and ending at the Gold Key issues! The asking price, only $2000 us. Again, my mind surged and I tried to raise the money. Again, the result was NO. I could not raise any money. This time, I tried for almost a year. What did I lose? My sense of perspective was gone and I was focused on an impossible goal. In the end, I gave up, and saw the issues sell one at a time on Ebay. I was deflated, but looking back, I now see how off balance I had become.

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