Does being rich means being happy?: Xin Yi

Although Singapore is a prosperous country, Singaporeans are not much happier than our neighboring countries that are not even as prosperous as us. One reason might be because we work too hard, causing our happiness level to decrease as our prosperity increase. Some people might feel stressed out as they need to hit their monthly quota, or even worried about whether they will get a job after they graduate, since the competition is so intense now. I feel that being rich does not equals to happiness. You might be rich, but do you get to spend and and be happy? Or do you continue to work to become richer and richer, while you become more unhappy as you undergo stress. The picture showed that there are poverty around us if we pay close attention. Maybe poverty is not as obvious in Singapore in comparison to other third-world countries, but there are indeed people struggling to pay their bills, fill their stomach, even getting proper education though the government will help with subsidies. We always see the senior citizens or disabled selling packs of tissue paper at the MRT station. They will also perform to earn some money such as singing and dancing. Are they performing just for the gist? Or do they really need money? I always see on the television about how the senior citizens live by themselves in a very poor and dirty environment. They are old and do not have the energy to tidy their living spaces. They don't have enough money to afford a better house and sometimes a few people even live together so as to cut down on the electricity and water bills. As the aging population is increasing, plus children always leave their elderly parents to fend for themselves, no doubt there is so many senior citizens living in poverty. Another case is where the family has too many children to provide for. They do not think on the long run, but instead thought that the more children they give birth to now, there will be more people to provide for them in the future. However, providing for their children now costs more than them providing for their parents next time. Then, these people will start to starve and will have to live in cramp environment, lacking basic neccesities. Though these people living in poverty might not be financially stable, but they will continue to smile, feeling joy in everyday that they live.