On the way home this evening I was listening to NPR. (You know, National Public Radio to all you cool rock music listening kids.) A man was discussing a book he wrote on the 100 richest Americans in 100 different cities. He kept referring to them as people who were living the American Dream.
When people think of the American Dream they think of wealth. Starting with nothing and ending with a lot of something. Lest you think I'm too self-righteous here, if someone handed me millions of dollars I would take it. And if being at stay at home mom was lucrative that would be cool by me.
The truth is though, when I think about what I want to accomplish with my life, I never think of money. I admit, poverty sounds awful. I don't want to wonder if I have enough money to feed my kids or to shelter them. I don't want to live on the street. Having said that though, wealth is not something that Greg or I pursue. It's just not important to us.
I know what I do want. I want a great marriage. Not good, but great. I want to still laugh really hard with Greg when we are 89 and deaf. I want to be his best friend. I want to be a woman he likes coming home to. I want our kids to look back and say that their childhoods were better because they always felt secure in our love for each other.
I want to raise kids who love God first and other people second. While I do want them to be happy, I don't want them to think that their happiness is what this life is about. I want them to learn gratitude and be thankful for the abundance of things they have, even if they have to share bedrooms (GASP, the HORROR!) I want them to respect other people and themselves. I want them to believe in truth and to know that some things aren't gray. I want them to know that their worth lies in their hearts and souls and not in the perceptions of the world. I want them to know how stinking much they are loved.
I want to live near our families. I want to spend our free time hanging out with cousins, aunts and uncles, grandparents, and great friends. I want to worry about who I'm vacationing with, not where.
And if somehow, pursuing a great marriage, raising amazing children, and building relationships makes me filthy rich, so be it.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
The American Dream
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4 comments:
Beautiful post Sara! I just couldn't agree more and this is so well written! What a gift contentment is, I think it is ultimately what everyone is striving for.
I so agree, contentment is so undervalued and unappreciated. I think a lot of people look at contentment as equal to boredom. Well then, give me boredom any old day of the week as I am a very content person and wealthy beyond my wildest dreams (even if our antiquated vehicles and small house don't show it).
Great post-I am printing it out to share with Matt! Thanks for writing this.
Beautifully written! People still think I am crazy for working at a school instead of a hospital (where they say I could make WAY more money apparently). What they don't understand is I CHOOSE to make less money at a job that has hours that allows me to spend more time with my family. You couldn't pay me enough to be away from them more.
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