It has grown bitterly cold in recent days, hovering around freezing both day and night.
This short-term shock of extreme cold (by UK standards) and the longer-term chill of economic precariousness have brought the true meaning of “wealth” into sharp focus. It isn’t yachts, private jets, or fleets of luxury cars. Those baubles accumulate in the hands of a statistically insignificant minority, acquired through a heady mix of sociopathic persistence and sheer dumb luck. Increasingly, we see this for what it is, and we are rapidly falling out of love with extreme wealth.
For most ordinary people, wealth is far more modest and far more meaningful. It is having a safe, secure place to call home. It is being able to turn the heating on without the quiet dread of the next bill. It’s bleak that the UK has arrived at this point, where so many basic comforts have slipped back into the category of “luxury.” Not, of course, for those insulated by unearned property wealth—I’m talking about the generations that followed.
I’m part of that unfortunate cohort for whom owning a nice house in a nice area has once again become a luxury, as it was in Victorian times, rather than a birthright. I feel lucky every day, and in a strange way, I’m grateful not to belong to the entitled generation that came before me.
It’s for this exact reason—and in light of both the season and the economy—that I feel very fortunate to possess something as humble as a decent oven. I didn’t even buy it; it came with the house. Yet for much of my young adulthood, having a “proper oven” was something I quietly longed for. It isn’t a flashy privilege, but it’s one that brings a little warmth into every day.
I’ve long since learned that mega-wealth and fame offer only the illusion of happiness, and, worse, they breed a corrosive, FOMO-fuelled unhappiness in those duped into believing they’re some kind of magic bullet.
Happiness, in reality, is cumulative. It’s built from lots of small things that gently elevate the mundane. My much-loved oven is one such small, glowing enhancement.
On 2nd January 2026 it’s one of the things I’m genuinely thankful for.
Dr Martin James 