Last night was the Season Four Finale for The L Word and our friend Helena was up to aRachel Shelley as Helena Peabody crazy money storyline once again. While it was far from the main storyline of the night – I talk about my take on what that main storyline REALLY was at my blog , it still is worthy of a few observations.

Nina has tackled the Helena story in the past so I won’t rehash the history or the obvious. However, last night, Helena clearly taught us all the seriousness of falling into the trap of building a lifestyle rather than a life.

To get my full take on the distinction between building a life or a lifestyle, you can read this earlier article. Essentially, though building a life means that you put your efforts (as well as your money) into building a rich and meaningful existence around who you are, not what you own. It doesn’t matter if you’re poor or a millionaire, you can build an fulfilling life. It has nothing to do with socioeconomic class, it has to do with conscious intention and who you are at the core. On the other hand, building a lifestyle is all about appearances and shiny things. It has little to do with who you are other than to say that most people who build a lifestyle wrap their entire identity into the “things” in life (toys, houses, status, job titles, etc.) which is partly why it is so dangerous. Once that status item changes or vanishes, the floor falls out from under them and they are left with the question “Who am I now?”. The answer echoes in the empty chamber of their soul with a big “no one”.

Anyone who has followed Helena’s story (portrayed by Rachel Shelley) this season has seen her make strange bedfellows with Katherine, a rich gambling, sex craved bitch who seeks to control people with her money. Rather than learn to stand on her own two feet, Helena has caved into the desire for shiny objects and the lifestyle of the rich and famous at any cost. This woman truly has no identity without her money and it’s sad to see the little progress she made early on in the season crumble to nothingness.

The highlights of last night’s show that truly illustrate this point are twofold.

First off Helena starts ranting and raving about how Katherine has given her fancy dinners, travel to exotic places, swanky hotels and houses, and the money lifestyle she can’t live without. That’s a strong statement right there — “can’t live without”. Truly Helena’s entire sense of worth is wrapped up in shiny coins and wads of greenbacks. It is not that she “can’t” live without it, it is that she has no idea who she really is on the inside and she chooses to follow the bling bling of a lifestyle at any cost to her values, morals, or friends (she did lose Alice’s venture capital money after all). By default she chooses to only follow the path of money because that is all she knows.

The second blaring example is the fact that Helena steals Katherine’s money from the safe at the beach house. In this case we have no idea how this will work itself out as it’s one of those inter-season mini cliffhangers. Yet, I have to wonder – Helena what the hell are you thinking? Do you honestly think a woman who’s life revolves around money and power won’t notice that you took her stash? I swear Helena will end up with a bounty on her head yet.

Of course our friends at The L Word and Helena are just fictitious characters, yet art does imitate life. The story and message Helena sends us loud and clear — don’t build your personal or financial foundation on the things that matter least.