A Little Man’s Lesson of More

We have a firm rule in our house: No video games during the week. The boys love playing video games, but it's not allowed during the school week. Between Friday night and Sunday afternoon, though, they can get video game time. One game they recently discovered is Fortnite; they are loving that game.

Fortnite has a very specific business model. The actual game is 100% free. Anyone can play the game as much as they want at zero cost. Then, the game developers will continuously release little extras for purchase: skins, accessories, music, etc. There's always something new, and as you can imagine, it's only available for purchase for a limited time (gotta create that urgency!).

Recently, Finn discovered a skin that he really, really, really, really wanted to buy. "It's only $6, Dad!!!" I immediately knew this was a great teaching moment. I explained to him that he's 100% able to buy it with his own money, but I added a word of caution. I told him that while this item seems cool to him today, he'll want something else almost immediately.

"You're always going to want something else."

"No, Dad, this is the only thing I want. This is it. I won't be buying anything else."

Again, I explained the problem with more. Every time we get more, more is still, well, more. There's no such thing as enough. He said he understood, but insisted that he'll be content after this purchase.

Fast forward to next weekend, and Fortnite introduced additional items for purchase. Would you believe that Finn desires one of these new items even more than the one he purchased a week ago?!?! Turns out, he's human.

I explained this concept again and reminded him of what I told him last week. He said he completely understands, but he's serious this time, "I won't want anything else after I buy this one. Seriously, Dad!"

The curse of more infects us when we're young and sticks with us until we die. It's not a matter of wiping it clean or pretending it doesn't exist. Instead, the mission ought to be to recognize it in ourselves, stay cognizant, and manage it well. This isn't the end of the story for Finn, just as it isn't the end of the story for you or me. Each day is its own battle. Every day presents new opportunities for us to overcome our desire for more, or to succumb to it. It's a sick and twisted game that's thrust upon us by both our culture and our own wiring.

As for little Finny, I suspect it's going to take a few more failures for him to recognize this element within himself. We'll keep battling!

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