Admittedly, I haven't kept up with the whole Wall Street protest thing. As I researched to find out what it was all about, it seems to me that the actual movement may have something to it, but 99% of the people involved probably aren't smart enough to understand the intricacies of it. I know I'm not.
So this post isn't really about the whole Occupy Wall Street thing because I can't really make an informed statement about it.
This post is more about entitlement. My generation is often called 'the generation of entitlement' and that is not in a good context. I admit, I have a sense of entitlement that I have to keep in check. I feel that I've worked hard, made good grades, done the right things, made wise choices, and therefore I should be able to afford to buy a house instead of live in this tiny apartment. I mean, I have a lot of friends that didn't work as hard or make as good of grades. They partied through college & they already have houses...
But the thing is, we can't afford a house right now. We're saving up, and although we feel like we should be at a point where we can buy a house, we just aren't yet. The end.
Whose fault is it? Well, it's not anyone's fault... it's just a fact. It's not the government's fault, and it's not the bank's fault. It's just not in the cards yet. Big whoop. I still have a roof over my head & money to pay the rent every month, so life really isn't all that bad! Yes, I want better than what I have right now, but I'm very grateful for what I have.
I've seen this flying around Facebook & it really struck me:
I could have written this myself. Other than a few minor details, this is my story. I still can't figure it out, but somehow I knew from kindergarten that I needed to make good grades to get a scholarship to go to college. There were 5 kids in my family & I was expected to go to college ('cause Lord knows I wasn't going to cut it in the family construction business!). In order to go to college, I had to get scholarships. I was terrible at sports, so everything was riding on my good grades. Luckily, I was good in school, formed good study habits, and graduated in the top 5% of my senior class.
All but my room & board were covered in scholarships at the modest state school I went to. It was a university & provided a fine (although quite liberal) education. My parents were able to (& gladly) covered my room & board. I maintained a 3.8 throughout college & graduated a semester early. I also got married after my sophomore year, so my parents no longer paid room & board because Josh & I were paying rent instead.
By the time I graduated I was making much better than minimum wage. I started at a counseling center filing paperwork & worked my way up until they trained me to actually work with clients to reach their therapy goals. We did have debt, so Josh & I both took to working nights at Domino's delivering pizzas.
Then? Then God called us to move to Atlanta & we both pretty much started over job-wise. And did you know that between delivering pizza's & working as a nanny for 20 hours a week, you can live in Alpharetta, GA? You can. We barely made ends meet, but we made it happen.
My point is, there's no replacement for hard work. You can be given all the money in the world, but unless you're responsible, it won't last for long.
Did we 'make it' on our own? Absolutely not. As my dad always says, "No one makes it in this world on their own." Remember how my parents covered my room & board those first two years? And that job at the counseling center? My boss hired me & put a lot of faith into me. And when we moved to Atlanta, the church we were leaving totally rallied around us & many members gave us money & gift cards out of the goodness of their hearts.
And that's not even giving any credit to God, which really... He gets all the credit for anything we're able to accomplish.
So yes, no one makes it on their own, but at the same time, you can't expect things to be handed to you. Nothing replaces hard work.
2 comments:
You sir, are a boor.
Post a Comment