Sally's Story: Can Money Buy You Happiness or Even Love
Can money buy you happiness? This essay will give the answer through the example of a biographical profile of a former UTS student Sally Bariol for the UTS Student Magazine, Vertigo for their Arts & Lifestyle column. The profile focuses on the unique love story of Sally's grandparents and whether money can buy happiness or even love. The intended audience for this profile would most likely be other UTS students or staff members who are interested in advice about dating and relationships.
As The Beatles sang in their 1964 song, Can't Buy Me Love 'I don't care too much for money, money can't buy me love'. However, after hearing Sally Bariol's grandparents' extraordinary love story it has made me question can money buy you happiness or even love?
Sally is a former University of Technology Sydney communications student, who lives in the Lower North Shore of Sydney and is studying public communication. Sally comes from a family of five including her Mum, Dad and two younger sisters, but, this family doesn't include any pets because they can't manage to keep any alive for longer than a couple of months. When she isn't working part-time at the healthy burger restaurant Grill'd, Sally, is most likely practising for or performing as the drummer for the rock band, Half Line. Her deep love for music comes from Sally's enjoyment of listening to a wide range of music from country to hip-hop. Although most of us university students aren't focused on love or at least long-term relationships at this time of their lives, Sally is still inspired by how her grandparents uniquely met and fell in love.
Sally's grandfather Roy was a dedicated soldier in the Australian Army, but his service abruptly came to an end after an accident resulted in serious injury to bother hands and the loss of multiple fingers. Though, this tragic accident wasn't the result of the brutal battlefront but the careless mistake of a fellow soldier and friend. This mistake ensued when a foolish soldier through gasoline into a fire while a group of soldiers surrounded trying to warn themselves. The soldier at fault felt so guilty for causing Roy's injuries that he saw necessary to compensate with a large sum of money. After repeatedly declining, Roy finally agreed to accept the soldiers offer and used the money to purchase a variety of gifts for himself and others, the most significant being a luxury sports car for himself. While proudly driving his new car around town, Roy locked eyes with the beautiful Jeanette and became instantly infatuated with her and just knew he had to have her in his life.
This raises the question did the money Roy received bring him this happiness or even his love with Jeanette? I believe that it isn't that simple, as I'm sure that their relationship was formed from reasons beyond Roy's flashy car. Yet, the way that university students like Sally and us first experience love could also be seen as superficial. This is because these connections are often formed through social media or online dating apps, where importance is placed on how good the other person's looks, body and lifestyle are. However, I believe this is beginning to change as people in particular women today can live more independently and consequently are not seeking marriage for financial stability. Therefore, I think we are now looking for a deeper connection and are prioritising values such as friendship, respect and trust. Ultimately, although Sally likes to share her grandparent's love story for its shock value, she most admires their ability to maintain a healthy long-lasting relationship.
