You can take it with you

I do not advocate consumerism.
but
Let no one say there is something defective with the massive consumption of objects that fulfill only fleeting desires.
A cup of coffee. A book. A movie. A music track. A cheese burger.
Yes, they may be manufactured cravings, by vindictive corporate entities.
But their consumption has come to represent something greater:
The struggle for what is desired, and what is wanted.
A reassurance that we can be more than the bare minimum.
and leave with more than we came with.
because
Although, by definition, we may live our lives
strictly with what we need,
to live on need alone
is merely surviving.