We’ve all felt sorry for rich people sometimes: that occasional guy (or gal!) with loads of cash, but very few real friends …
… who drives a Lamborghini home to a huge, empty house, because he’s worked himself out of a family.
It makes you realize that people can have tons of money and still be missing out on true wealth.
Now compare that rich (but not wealthy) person with Juancensio—a Tarahumara Indian I met a few years back on a trip to Copper Canyon, Mexico.
In this video, I tell you more about my journey to meet the Tarahumara.
It’s a fact that Juancensio didn’t have much money by American standards.
But, then, true wealth can’t be measured in dollars and cents:
- He lived in a gorgeous valley surrounded by incredibly fertile soil.
- He grew amazing crops every year and got his water from a fresh mountain spring.
- He lived and worked with his beautiful, loving family.
- He was healthy and able.
- He had plenty of food on the table, plus a three year’s supply of corn and beans stored on his property.
- He deeply enjoyed his life and found his work meaningful.
- He was well-respected in his community.
I’m sure you’d agree with me that, even though Juancensio didn’t drive a Lamborghini, he was still an incredibly wealthy man.
Many of you have written to ask what got me started writing Grow: All True Wealth Comes From the Ground.
I can truly say a major inspiration came as I stood on Juancensio’s front porch, drinking in the realization that this Tarahumara Indian man—whom very few Americans would consider “rich”—was one of the wealthiest people I had ever met.
I think, as you watch it, you’ll see why I had to tell this story—and why both you and I are already wealthier than most millionaires.
And then, let me know: How do you define true wealth?
I look forward to hearing from you!
COMMENTS(67)
Marjory,
Very nice and interesting, although I would have liked to see some video teasers of Juancensio and Pedro!
I always enjoy your presentations.
Thank you.
Very inspiring! We should all try to LIVE for a LIVING, meaning, produce things for your life, not for corporations. STAY MOTIVATED EVERYONE!!
You certainly had a amazing trip. Pedro’s story was inspiring and you are a great storyteller. Thank you for sharing.
Wonderful story. Would have loved to see Juancensio place. Pedro’s story was touching and I am glad that in the end he did not blow his earnings. Look forward to seeing the rest of your videos. Thanks for sharing.
Love the video & your message Marjory.
I live around many economically “less fortunate” people, many Hispanics, who are hard working. Many are very happy, because they have many of the things you spoke of.
I also have many very monetarily wealthy folks, some very happy, some not.
Our health & happiness can be so much easier to obtain & maintain with the things, (or non-things, ha!), you spoke of!
Thanks, scott
Thank you so much, Scott. I really am happy to took the time to share.
i find all of your videos and information inspiring but this is by far the most moving and awe inspiring one yet. i look forward to the journey and completion of this new endeavor. thank you for this wealth of information and taking the time and effort to share it with all us who are looking for the same weath and freedom as you. thanks again
You are so kind, Kimberly. Thank you for taking the time to reach out. 🙂
Hi Marjory,
Enjoyed the video. I agree that you are a wealthy woman!
FYI: The music volume becomes way too loud at times and the music tune is not helpful. It is jarring to the senses, especially when it is at top volume. 🙂
Noted, Jan! Thank you so much for writing in. 🙂
This video had perfect timing, because just the other day, my boy friend and I are sitting on the couch after dinner, and he says “I’m rich! I have a roof over my head, a full belly and a wonderful girl friend!”. We are just your average folks, working together to be happy. Thanks for the wonderful story and reminder that money is not everything it’s made out to be. Yes, it is important, but not the most important.
So great to hear this, Pam. Thank you so much for sharing!
Thank you Marjory. Thanks for sharing this experience. Uplifting and very true!
Outstanding message! I would like to have seen pictures of the area, however you explained so well!
I appreciate your feedback, Barbara! Thank you so much for writing in! 🙂
I’m really looking forward to hearing the next part of the story. Your heart is apparent in everything that you do.
Thank you so much, Amy!! Hugs!
Hello Majory!
I agree with you totally thst real wealth is not from money, but from the ground. I grew up on a farm in Illinois, I helped my grandparents who grew crops, a,garden, milked cows. Raised cattle and hogs, chickens. My grandmother only had to buy suga, salt, flour, and basic staples at the store. We butchered, and had the freshest meat, poultry, eggs, vegetabkes,you could ever have. My grandmother made her own butter, whipped cream, she baked every Thursday. I also did many of the same things with my parents. Only thing, my parents decided to work outside the home.
I belonged to 4-H, DAD, and raised registered polled Hereford cattle, and had a,garden project.
When I got old enough to buy a car, I changed, I thought you had,to work for money to be happy. Well I am 64, and I found out that is not wealth and happiness. I own a small coffee shop, I roast my own coffee beans,to sell. I am,now getting into growing vegetables with raised bed gardens, I live in town, I want to grow more in this, I am,very interested in,indudtr isl,hemp, and would lij e to do something with it as soon as it gets legalized.
I sincerely live gearing what you say and write. Thank you, and keep up the good work!
Hi Marjorie,
Yes I totally agree with you about wealth, I am a female, 63 years young, we have a 70 acre farm near Comanche Tx, an older home on 1/2 acre in Logan Utah and also acreage further west in the mountains closer to Nevada (high desert climate). I am originally from central Alberta , Canada. My parents and grandparents farmed large tracts of land – raised timothy hay, hard winter wheat , raised milk and meat cows… geese for their down and also sheep for wool.
However the downside for me is not having many supportive family members left, I do have many grandchildren, but they are spread far and wide from TX to northern Alberta, so do not see them often.
What I do Marjorie, because we have no close family members by us, I keep busy by trying to extend my knowledge of growing herbs, (mainly medicinal,)making tinctures, try to become skilled with making whole grain einkhorn wheat sourdough bread etc and I want to expand in survival skills, in case of a coming calamity .
Oh yes last year I tried growing some heirloom varieties of corn… I had to start them inside in March,
transplant them in May, harvested in September ever though this is zone 3 (high desert) so was very pleased with that.
Good Luck with your Book
All the Best
Cathy
Way to go Marjorie! That was a neat story how that message impacted Pedro and his family! It’s a great reminder for us all! Thank you!
Marjory, I think you’re right. My husband and I have a (very) large garden, 72 tomato plants, 6 long rows of green beans, 2 rows okra,2 rows cantaloupe (love that cantaloupe), a row of squash, 22 pepper plants, some herbs,cucumbers,cilantro,potatoes,parsley and carrots. I’m sure I haven’t named all of the garden plants (on yes onions and leeks) but I sure do feel good about it and I know what you mean about feeling wealthy. We have 13 chickens, 10 layers and 3 roosters. Yes, it’s alot of work and I wish I’d bought this place or one like it 10 years ago, just have 10 acres and on yes, I’ve bought a 30’X65, greenhouse have yet to put up. Oh what fun to have exotic tropical trees in there this winter. Marjorie I love to read all about what you’ve been doing and especially loved the story about the snake and how you overcame it.
This is a message that resonates deeply. With all of the turmoil, unhappiness, superficiality and violence in our country today, a step back to realize what is really important is refreshing and a powerful reminder to live in alignment with your nature and your purpose. Thank you for tapping me on the shoulder and reminding me to stay true to my core purpose, to stay connected to my family, to stay close to the natural world and to then enjoy the peace that all of that creates. Thank you.
Donna, I could not agree more with you! Spot on 🙂
Hello from Greece ….
am enjoying the videos!!
What a beautiful & inspirational video! I can’t wait to read your book when it comes out, I know it will be a treasured item that will be my go to. I can’t wait for the next video to come out 🙂
You’ve hit the nail on the head with this one. True wealth is not in money or things, but in people and health and contentment.
A beautiful teaching 🙂 Thank you Marjory!
This is fantastic stuff that can make us feel empowered to improve our wealth in new ways. One thing comes to mind that isn’t mentioned, and it’s probably the hardest thing in our culture: Our lack of communal wealth. As Daniel Quinn pointed out in Ishmael, tribal economies were basically “Give support -> Get support” rather than “earn money -> spend money”. In his other book Beyond Civilization, he gets into the wealth of the tribe. This subject is well beyond most of our expertise, but even if not attempting to cover it in detail, it might be worth a mention in this chapter.
It might also be worth giving more elaborate examples of people with a lot of money who are poor. That’s a little counter intuitive for some people. Imagine a rich person who is bored. Or a rich person who alienated his/her friends. Or a rich person who eats out a lot at expensive restaurants and has high blood pressure and heart disease (who then has a heart attack and wishes that he/she had the types of friends who you care to visit him/her in the hospital). Or a rich person who feel he/she has too much to lose if they give up their high-paying, high-stress job to do something they love.
When most people hear, “Money does not equal happiness,” they roll their eyes and dismiss it by saying, “well being poor doesn’t make us happy, either,” usually concluding that “I would be happier with more money.” That’s basically our self-defense mechanism reassuring us that we’re doing the right thing already, no action needed.
I wonder if the concept of resilience might also apply to this chapter, thought that may be more directly related to security than to wealth, though they’re related.
Good luck! Dale
Hi Marjory,
Years ago I thought like Pedro about wealth as accumulating money, so I bought a book entitled Rich Dad Poor Dad. I read the whole book & even tried to dabble in the realestate side of it. One day I recieved a call from someone about also investing in precious metals. Not sure how that call came about, but one thing I remembered about the conversation was that with so many uncertainties about the future, financial security was a concern, so the person on the phone advised that rather then gold, silver, because it was still priced so low & much less available will push it’s value much higher proportionally then gold. For the same dollar invested I would get a much higher return in the coming years. It should provide me the financial security I would need in a financial crises.
Upon hearing this I wondered….if the financial world collapses & everything comes to a halt. My community would run out of food supply withing days. Without the shipping industry or airfreight service we would have nothing. All the money in the world would not be able to buy us food. I can’t eat money or silver or gold. I told the person that perhaps what I really should be investing in is a farm.
It took him by surprise & he could not argue for a better reason.
Marjory: Thank you. Even though I know about all that you said, a lot of times we human beings can get so overwhelmed that we will tend to lose perspective about things. I thank God that I was able to see this video and get centered again for the ump-teength time (HA!). God is good and I needed this today.
Very inspiring
absolutely agree with you .but what kills my happiness is mortgage. all my beautiful orchard, garden, berry bushes, grapes etc. is really belong to the bank. this Mexican people are really wealthy if they don’t nave mortgage. i am trying my best we grow most of our vegetables,from my own seeds, have chickens for meat and for eggs,sell some eggs, bees, sell some honey,make maple syrop and sell some.we cook everything from scratch baking sourdough bread, making pickles and sauerkraut,homeschooling kids and we are healthy. it helps.but my husband has to work outside to pay all the bills and taxes.so i enjoy doing all this homesteading activities and kidds are good and healthy, but the fact that we don’t own this property is like dark cloud in the back of my mind.you are right that wealth come from the earth ,from the land. i heard that in Indian tradition land is belong to the people that work it. unfortunately situation here is different, and i know that some organic farmers renting land for farming. this is the problem.
Hi Majory, I’m so exited to joining you and your team for the next Grow Summit, I’m originally from Mexico, Cd, Juarez Chihuahua. The State that you visited in Mexico. I’m sad that you mention this beautiful country as drug, alcohol and violence place it is not that way. You probably went to the lowest places as if you go to any ghetto in USA same thing different country. We also have beautiful places where not even cigarettes are consumed as my house and many of my relatives and friends. I’m actually writing a book about marriage, and how i turned from being an angry wife ready for divorce to a happy, loving wife. By changing all the bad habits and limited beliefs that where destroying me and shifted into a new life style. Throught my journey I discover that, my authentic wealth resides on my thruth happiness and health and it comes from loving, giving and caring for me and others.
With my best regards, thank you for all that you are doing and for sharing your knowledge with us.
Yours truly
Clarita Garcia.
“If three people walk together, one of them is my teacher. “. You may believe that you have helped someone, but in reality, because we are all one, they have helped you also. For each and very good act: love, kindness, gratitude, giving, receiving, accepting, you reap the same. Usually tenfold. Here is what I do: I have an old necklace of 100 beads, to this I attached another necklace of 16 pearls. Each night when I retire, I say a thank you on each bead, for something good that happened during my day. The pearls are for my angels and I say: four Angels round my bed, two at the foot, two at the head, one to love and one to pray and two to keep bad things away. (My grandma used to say this with me). The rest of the pearls are thank you o my angel of hope, my angel of abundance, my angel of protection, my angel guides, etc. Thank you, thank you, thank you. In the morning , I use the same beads and I do my gratitude for the gifts I will receive that day. I then do my Angels again, except I say : Four Angels round my being. One to love and one to pray, and two that bring good things my way. Grateful, greatful, grateful.
There is a difference in thank you, and grateful. You feel it when you do it.
With all this goodness seeping out of my spirit, my days are filled with joy, such tremendous joy that it goes beyond description.
I also carry a grateful stone in my pocket all day long,so every time I reach into my pocket I remember to express a thought for something I am grateful for. (Learned this from the book, The Secret. )
You, Marjorie, bring so much goodness to the earth. I say, thank you, thank you, thank you and grateful, grateful, grateful. You are a part of my family, I speak of you to others as “sister”. ???
Om Shanti, Om peace.
I believe that wealth has a lot more involved then money. It is centered around love! When you combine God and family you have a circle of life. It’s like a weaver putting the different colored threads in a beautiful blanket. The end result of all your effort is beauty. When there is light there is happiness and it holds all things together. It is like you are a creator of your little spot on earth and you feel fulfilled.
Excellent video Marjory and right on the money thank you for sharing .
Made me want to go down there to live!
I found myself totally drawn in with the wonderful sincere way and narrative
you presented the intro. It creates an feeling of desiring a more grounded approach
to life and awareness to appreciating what I have in life.
So looking forward to next episode.
Thank you
It has been my experience that when a person has the need or desire to go to a place and do a certain thing it is never really about what that person thinks it is. That place or thing is almost always about a relationship…an impact on yourself by another or our impact on another. You did not go there to learn for yourself…not really…you went as the demonstration for Pedro. You are open and compassionate. Americans are presumed to be wealthy (should say materially burdened). You were the perfect person to speak to Pedro. Juancensio has it all. Pedro had it too. He just could not see it. You gave him a change of perspective.
I was blessed to learn that life is about relationship and not stuff early in my life. My Grandma’s family lost everything when the town of Ausable burned to the ground. Everyone lost everything. I know this affected her…..if horses would scream during western movies, Grandma would leave the room. My Great-aunt said, “That is what the horses did as they died. Most were trapped.” My Grandmother and Grandfather moved to Detroit and worked hard to buy a home. Bought the land with a very tiny house. Saved and built the big house and then the depression hit. Overnight Grandpa had no income. Grandma went to work at the Book Cadillac hotel as a housekeeper. They lost the house. Grandpa and children moved back to Tawas at the family homestead. Grandma worked and worked. She got her house back. My mama told me once that loosing the house changed her mom. Grandma bought the best. She had a house full of antiques. All the stuff for looking at. Plastic on furniture and do not touch anything.
My step-grandpa got sick and moved in with us. I was 11. The next year my mother talked Grandma into moving out to our farm. Grandma agreed on the condition that she could bring everything. My mom said OK….my dad kept his mouth quiet. Both women were loved and respected by Dad. He knew it would have to be that way even though Mama had nice things and taste wise they ladies were opposites. The good furniture came in the house, mom’s was given away. The china and other antiques were boxed away in an out building. It was later that year when Grandma was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. My Mama and I took care of her. Mama’s health plan of vitamins kept the cancer at bay for about a year. Grandma lived the last 6 months of her life in her bedroom. All that stuff meant nothing to her. Grandma was my friend and we would talk. She talked of relationships. All that stuff that had been so very important had NO meaning during the last 18 months of her life. I learned then that relationship and health are the wealth in this world.
I loved this video and I love what you are doing. You are an inspiration, so real and sincere. Thank you for all that you do.
Great job Marjory! Your videos are always so inspiring!
Marjory,
You are “on the money”…I am touched and inspired by your video.
I loved your story but I think maybe you could have mentioned that seed saving is vital to being self sufficient, here and abroad.
I teach gardening classes for free at my house to help teach as many people as possible about growing food, preserving and saving heirloom seeds. My meetup group is called wny gardening I show people how to save seeds, grow sprouts, micro greens, and sunflower shoots, we make and plant lasagna gardens no till, no weeding, no watering, no fertilizing. Crazy easy.
We met briefly at the summit in Pennsylvania and I was waiting to see Joel (my idol). Your lectures were really helpful and I love the fact you have impacted so many people with your info.
Thank you
Hi Marjory!
I look forward to these and enjoy them so much. I have also shared “you” with some friends and they think you are pretty neat too. I appreciate to opportunity to view these. The stories you tell are so relevant. Although I see other comments wishing they could have seen Pedro or Juansencio and his homestead I am glad you didn’t. Your words painted the picture for me and by them I saw his wealth. Having had the blessing of visiting places and people around the world I also agree. Those who by economic standards often had the least were the richest in far more ways. They also made me feel richer for having been with them. Such a gift! I recommend a documentary called “Happy” that relates to this as well.
Looking forward to hearing from you again,
~V~
You have got video presentations nailed, very engaging and compelling. I did look forward to every installment of your travelogue, so your writing skill is up to par with your AV. Thanks for the inspiration and passion.
It is wonderful that your message is available to the world. It supports some of us that value people as able to make a great life by providing much of what we do by ourselves. Children can grow up feeling accomplished and worthwhile, not just dependent and expensive to raise. Even the medicines we can grow mean we would not have to use the horribly expensive medicines to stay alive or heal. With a faith in the God of the Bible we can even expect to be healed through prayer.
I am a psychotherapist who sees the people that others will not take because they often don’t have any kind of insurance. The indigent, medicaid, social security dependent need my services. I live simply and raise my own vegetables as much as possible. I look to people like you, Marjory, to educate me through your knowledge and hands-on teaching. Next year I turn 80 and God has kept me healthy and able to work.
This has been my favorite one of the videos you’ve done for this book.
What a beautiful story. I often think about how sad it is that some people never think about the kind of meaning that you just spoke about.
I am so fortunate that I started to think this way very early in life and pursued until I really “got it” some time between 50 and 60. I am the proud mother of 5, 3 of whom were adopted around 10 years ago. Is life easy – no. Is it a lot more fun and meaningful than continuing to work to accumulate lots of money for lots of possessions – you bet 🙂
I take care of my own and a few others when able, I garden, and I enjoy the simple opportunities of community.
I look forward to the videos. Your description of the trip and experience sounded great. While I find my work meaningful I would love to have time to garden, grow some of my own food and be with my family. 40 hours a week indoors just does something to you, even if that work is helping other people. I can’t imagine how wonderful it would be to be free of office politics and my own boss. Thanks for doing what you do to bring the knowledge to those of us who have always lived in the city and don’t have a clue. I am in my early 60’s and would really like it if you would consider doing more videos like how to garden with a bad back. I guess it’s never too late to start.
Amen Sister! Love the story and can’t wait to see you put it all together. When we have our health, we have everything. Home grown is where it is and eating fresh the only way to go!
I raise dairy goats, grow a garden, pasture chickens and raise a pig every so often. My back to Eden Garden does great with the goat poo and I love it all. Fresh veggies and fruit is the nutrition we need.
I love the video rather then just a photo of you and a commentary. Excel on girl!
I think you’re missing a major issue which is political. The government claims your subservience to their laws and taxes. If your wealth is in your property, I feel sorry for you. Farms are subject to authority outside of our control. I don’t want to be involved in a battle for money and power, which is what your life-style represents.
Marjory, thank you. You have brought me back to the person I was and want to be again with your story. Life can beat you to death, if you let it. I’ve been letting drama and negativity get to me and it has taken away a lot of my energy. I’m reclaiming my life and my balance. 🙂
Really enjoyed thought provoking ideas presented. Wish more of us would think like this instead of collecting material things as status of wealth.
I applaud you with this book, I cant wait to see where it takes us all. You are changing lives and that in itself is an abundant wealth. I totally agree with you on wealth coming from enriched life and not materialistic and or currency. The way a family or community comes together in what so many call a simple farmers life, to me, is so fulfilling – givning a sense of peace and happiness and connection I have never known from getting things through money or greed. Sharing and spending time with others and helping others truly has made me feel complete.
I absolutely love all of these great articles and videos! When I was a very young child growing up, my grandparents lived on a farm, I was too little then to understand what was going on. Then some of my grandparents had chickens and a very large garden that they grew for food, and I loved to go visit on my spring vacations from school. It was so much fun! I’m a true country girl at heart, and want to go back to that! I want to manifest my own USDA organic farm and vineyard here in North- Carolina, to help the community with its ailments and work force! By providing quality herbs, plants, vegetables, fruits, etc., to help with making our community stronger and healthier, as well as providing good paying jobs!
Thanks Margery for your input on real wealth.
You got me thinking and looking at my surroundings and lifestyle for the very first time. And guess what?
I am not happy, satisfied or fulfilled! Great time with you through and with this video.
I see a world around me who are just lost looking for real meaning. This video took me back in time when I was a child looking through my grandparents and great grandparents pictures. They had land and animals of all kinds! Women playing with their children and each other while washing their clothes in the rivers. I did not know until today that the clothes were slapped against the nearby rocks. LOL! And, that they made their own soaps! Pictures of everyone participating in the kitchen! Each one had a particular task and they all looked sooo happy. They indeed looked fulfilled together. Thanks and many blessings to you and family.
Well said, Margarita. My husband and I feel very similarly. We do not have a lot of the new stuff people have. We have a home that we paid off in 2 years, not because we have a lot of money, but we lived below our means for 20 years. We had plenty of adventures and experiences but the focus is on togetherness. As long as we do it together, it didn’t matter if lunch was $1 taco from a Taco Truck or canned oysters with crackers and hot sauce. We enjoyed every minute of it. We love what we have, our family, friends, our home, our little hybrid car, our garden, our chickens and all the experiences we get out of them.
One personal thing I want to add is the spiritual aspect of it. My husband and I go to Sunday mass because we get sustenance from it, not because we have to. I understand that spiritual sustenance is not front and center for a lot of people, but we all seek something in our lives. And that’s where it gets sticky, where more and more money and acquisition of of more and more stuff become a replacement for that which we seek.
Money is a made-up thing. People made it up so we can exchange for goods we need without having to carry heavy rocks, heavy metal, walk a cow for payment at the grocery store, etc. But our perception of “need” has changed and so has our perception of money.
For me, having enough money is security knowing I have a roof over my head, enough to live on and enough to share.
Keep up the good work,
Tina
Thanks so much Marjorie! I grew up in Philippines and saw many simple happy people. Now I live in a mobile home park in St. Petersburg, FL, and have a beautiful garden and fruit trees. I have enough to share with many friends plus homeless people. I know and love my neighbors, and volunteer at an organic farm. Life is wonderful and full.
Would it be possible to show some photos on your video too? If you aren’t allowed to show the Indian man himself, perhaps you could show the valley. Otherwise, it is an interesting video, and you are a very easy presenter to watch.
Thanks for this uplifting knowledge you share Marjory.
I am already towards making it towards a wealthy life.
Honestly i feel money is the main root cause for evil. Although it has brought certain benefits, human values are lost. Feels like we need to start learning values like love, sacrifice, naturtal living from animals and plants.
Keep inspiring us, love you.
Well presented abd yes you have captured the essence of life, praise God.
I live a simple life, I have my cat, dogs and especially my chickens. I have a bountiful garden. I prepare it each year with chicken, horse and straw to rebuild the soil. I don’t have a lot of money but what I do have I give to my church in tithes and fast offings. its funny living this simple life I always seem to make it threw each year.
Where is the video you made when you visited the indians?
Hi Marjory, I love your work in the world! We seem to be on similar tracks–kindred spirits. I am all about increasing nutrient content in foods. I was a nutritionist when I came to understand how our foods had lost so much of their nutrient content. I went back to the soil to “create health from the soil up” (my byline) and discovered how to greatly increase nutrient content. I developed the Beyond Organic Growing System (BOGS)–my last name! My book, Beyond Organic…Growing for Maximum Nutrition and Flavor, describes this. I’m also teaching an online, interactive course called Perfect Soil.
I continue to learn, research, and evolve. I am planning another course/book for the next level.
I hope we can collaborate somehow.
Blessings,
Jana