Update on Life

Good afternoon my dear friends....

I hope all is well with you. I am hunkering down and weathering this economic storm that we are in the midst of. Of course not everyone is experiencing this economy the same way....so if you are one of the lucky ones.....I am sincerely happy for you!!!! I wouldn't want anyone to feel the turmoil I am feeling.

I have been struggling to find employment. This is the first time I have ever had so much trouble finding work. I used to go to one or two job interviews and be working at one of them the next day. This is my first recession experience....well, I think it's safe to say it is a depression for me....and I have a very strange feeling that we have a long way to go until things get better.

I think we are done with the never-ending consumerlifestyle that we were raised and conditioned to pursue. That is only part of this economic mess that I am actually happy about. I have long felt we have put too much importance on acquiring things and not enough time in engaging in meaningful relationships and experiencing life through adventures and personal challenges.

So, I am now one of the newly "homeless/jobless" in America. Yes, I am the first in my family, since the Great Depression, to be technically poor. I am sad for my parents. They had so many hopes for me and I was their last chance for a fourth-generation college graduate (and they are all women graduates). My parents were the first generation of "middle-class" Americans (both their fathers died when they were young children) to raise their children in a modest but well-provided for fashion.

We lived in a nice clean house, never went without nutritious, home-cooked meals and besides an occasional (but deserved) spanking, there was no physical or emotional abuse in our house. My mother worked at a local university so she could get a free education and when she turned 27 she received her Masters in Education. She kept the house clean, made our meals, did the laundry, occasionally sewed clothes for me (and herself) worked an outside job AND went to school. If that isn't the definition of SUPERWOMAN I don't know what is!!!! What is more amazing is that my father's work would occasionally involve taking trips all over the world. He could be gone anywhere from two weeks to a month or more. So, my mother had to handle running the house and dealing with whatever came her way, on her own!

So, my situation makes me feel worse in that I feel as though I have let my parents down. Not that I can control the economy and tell the government what they should do (if I had billions of dollars to lavish on the politicians I would have a better chance....but that isn't the case) but I feel bad that I didn't measure up to their expectations all the same. I am sorry I didn't want to live my life in a way that made them feel safe, comfortable and even in a way where they could brag about me to their friends.

I have been told by my friends that I should write a book. Lord knows I have lots to talk about...right??? The only thing I haven't done is commit robbery, kill or engage in crimes involving others as victims. I am not sure if it would be a best-seller without some grizzly-tabloid blood story...but I am willing to give it a shot.

Well, I think this is enough for now. I hope I haven't saddened my readers. I am learning how to rise above adversity with my head held high. : )

Until next time....

Blissfully,

Emma : )