What are the most important things needed to live a good life?
In school, I remember learning about Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. You know, the pyramid that starts with food, water, and shelter at the bottom and eventually works its way up to self-actualization at the top. At the time, it seemed pretty straightforward: meet your basic needs, keep climbing, and eventually you’ll become your best self.
As an adult, though, life feels a lot messier than a pyramid.
I work a customer service job. I make a little more than minimum wage. My husband and I are expecting our first baby. We’re also trying to move because we can’t find a house that fits our budget and our growing family. On paper, there is a lot of uncertainty in my life right now.
And yet, strangely, I feel content.
Not because I have everything figured out. Not because my bank account is overflowing. Not because I’ve reached some magical level of adulthood where nothing stresses me out.
I feel content because I’m not carrying all of this alone.
When I think about the most important things needed for a good life, I don’t think it’s money, success, or even stability. Those things help, of course. But what has made the biggest difference for me lately is community.
My mom is there when I need her. My best friend is there. The people I love show up for me in big ways and small ways. They help me solve problems, celebrate wins, listen to my worries, and remind me that hard seasons don’t last forever.
Life is still uncertain. We still have decisions to make. There are still days when I wonder how everything is going to work out.
But uncertainty feels a lot less overwhelming when you have people standing beside you.
Maybe that’s the thing Maslow’s pyramid got right all along. Right in the middle of it is love and belonging. Not at the top. Not as some bonus reward you get after you’ve accomplished everything else. Right in the center.
Maybe a good life isn’t about having complete certainty. Maybe it’s about having people you can lean on while you figure things out.
And right now, that’s enough for me.