Things we lost in the fire

Lately, I've found myself in a state of mind, where I'm trying to find out how deep a meaning materialistic possessions have for me. All provoked from previous events, and because of two movies - BABEL and THINGS WE LOST IN THE FIRE. Movies where the result of human interaction is a constant presence, and what it means, when communication can go wrong. They are both movies, in my opinion, where the director tries to show the audience, what is key in life, in his opinion.
So what is key in a long- or short-lived life? Is it if I have pink or short hair, is it the new expensive boots I'm eyeing? Is it the daily trips thru copenhagen on my bike watching life go by? Is it the relations I so hardly try to sustain, because without them, I don't know how to define who I really am? How can a human-being make the distinction between what is really materialistic, and what is not? Who do we look for, for help? Is it the September issue of Vogue, or the forest, that so truly follows the laws of nature? How would people react if they lost things in the fire?