Greed has driven the world crazy. And I think I'm lucky that I

In the solemn and soulful words of Nina Simone, the High Priestess of Song, we hear not merely a reflection on the state of the world, but a cry from the heart of humanity itself: “Greed has driven the world crazy. And I think I'm lucky that I have a place over here that I can call home.” These words, though simple, tremble with centuries of sorrow and wisdom. They rise from a voice that had witnessed beauty and brutality alike—a voice that carried the ache of exile and the yearning for peace. Beneath her lament is a truth both ancient and eternal: that greed, the unholy hunger for more, has unbalanced the human spirit and cast the world into chaos; and that in contrast, to have a home, a sanctuary untouched by that madness, is the rarest form of grace.

Nina Simone spoke these words after leaving her homeland, disillusioned by injustice, racism, and the fever of material pursuit that consumed her country and age. She found refuge in distant lands—places of calm where she could breathe and simply be. To her, home was not just a house or nation, but a state of peace, a space where the soul could rest. Her mention of “a place over here” was not about geography—it was about finding stillness amid the storm. In her music, her exile, and her reflection, she expressed what the ancients knew well: that when a world is sickened by greed, the true wealth lies in contentment and the freedom of the spirit.

The ancients told of this disease of desire. In the myths of Greece, King Midas asked that everything he touched be turned to gold. His wish was granted—but soon, his food turned to gold, his daughter to gold, and his joy to dust. In his greed, he destroyed all he loved. So too has the modern world, with its endless grasping, forgotten the measure of enough. Nina Simone’s lament is the Midas myth reborn—spoken not as legend, but as living truth. For she saw how the hunger for wealth, fame, and power had driven her people and her nation into madness—how it had replaced compassion with competition, community with consumption. “Greed has driven the world crazy,” she said, and her voice, though weary, carried the weight of prophecy.

Yet amid this despair, her words turn—softly, humbly—toward gratitude. “I think I’m lucky that I have a place… that I can call home.” In that one phrase lies redemption. For even in a broken world, there remains the possibility of sanctuary. Home, to Nina Simone, was not about walls or possessions, but about belonging and peace. It was the space where she could lay down the armor demanded by a greedy world. To have such a place, she suggests, is a miracle. To find contentment in simplicity is to possess a treasure beyond gold. Her wisdom mirrors that of the Stoics, who taught that the wise person is rich not because they have much, but because they desire little.

Consider the story of Diogenes, the philosopher who lived in a barrel. When Alexander the Great visited him and asked if there was anything he desired, Diogenes replied, “Yes, stand out of my sunlight.” The emperor, who ruled half the world, could not offer the beggar a greater gift than the freedom he already possessed. Diogenes had nothing, yet he lacked nothing. In this, he was kin to Nina Simone, who, though cast out from her country, found in solitude a peace no empire could buy. True wealth, both taught, lies not in abundance, but in independence from the world’s madness.

From her words, a lesson shines like a flame in the dark: do not measure your life by what you own, but by the peace you keep. The world may run wild in pursuit of gain, but you, my listener, must learn the wisdom of enough. Seek not the applause of the many, but the quiet joy of the soul. Guard your heart against envy, for greed is a hunger that feeds on itself. Build your home not from gold or ambition, but from love, stillness, and truth. For the one who has peace in their dwelling, even if it is humble, possesses a kingdom greater than any monarch’s.

So remember the words of Nina Simone, the seer of song: when the world goes mad with greed, retreat to your home—not just the one made of brick and stone, but the inner home of your spirit. Let that place be your refuge, where no greed can touch and no noise can enter. For there, in the quiet, you will find your true wealth—the peace of a soul untamed by the world’s madness. And when you find it, hold it sacred, for it is the last light of sanity in a world gone astray.