A lifetime of hard work and careful planning can be overshadowed by a single, unavoidable reality: we cannot take our achievements with us. After years of building and creating, a person is forced to leave the fruits of their labor to someone else, completely losing control over how those resources will be used.
This uncertainty casts a heavy shadow over the very act of gathering wealth. The root of this frustration lies in the unknown character of the one who will inherit it all. If a person knew for certain that their successor would be wise and responsible, there would be no reason to feel distress [מצודת דוד]. However, a deep sense of helplessness arises from the simple fact that no one can dictate the nature of the person who comes after them [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Regardless of whether the heir turns out to be wise or completely foolish, that individual will be handed absolute control over every property, project, and enterprise that the original owner spent a lifetime building through skill and effort [מצודת דוד, ביאור שטיינזלץ].
This exact dilemma shaped the practical approach of the sage Rabbi Meir. He chose to divide his weekly income entirely between his own basic needs and the financial support of Torah scholars, deliberately saving nothing for his own children. His reasoning was straightforward: if his sons grew up to be righteous, God would surely provide for them and never abandon them. On the other hand, if they chose a wicked path, there was absolutely no reason to leave his hard-earned property to the enemies of God [תורה תמימה].
Understanding this lack of control leads to a sobering realization about the futility of such efforts. The very act of endlessly gathering wealth and property simply to pass it on to an unknown future heir is ultimately a pointless pursuit [מצודת דוד]. The reality that a wise and hardworking person might spend their entire life building something, only for a fool to inherit and potentially ruin it, is considered one of the fundamental, built-in futilities of the world [רש״י].