So, how do you see yourself this morning? Are you rich with possibilities? Are you grateful for all the riches and blessings bestowed on you by a benevolent providence, family, contacts? Are you standing in front of a mirror and examining your status in life right now?
Yes. Do.
You are young for your age? What luck!
Not luck, you say?
Did you get any help, assistance, consultations, professional interventions?
No?
Again, I think that's sheer luck!
Did your perfect smile come naturally, without help from dentists, orthodontists? That your parents didn't insist you brush your teeth, with that special toothpaste, and even insisted you flossed between teeth and used that rinse? And they checked that you did?
There was knowledge, support and caring there for you.
For many children I've known, tooth tending was not part of their daily routine. Money for dentists was not available; money for toothbrushes and toothpaste was not available. Many children I've known didn't even get the first well-baby visits after their birth. Their mothers brought them home, and soon after these same children became a burden she could not manage. You see, she was barely a child herself.
I wondered many times what she could have done differently when she told me she was dropping out of school at fourteen. I reminded her that school was mandated until eighteen. That's when she told me her uncle had raped her and now he was in jail, and she was sent away to live with her grandmother who might help her raise the child so she could continue attending school. She was not the only child I've known who quit school at an early age and never returned.
And then I thought how close we all are to perdition, at some point in our lives. How, if not for the help of a relative, or a good friend, we could not get money down for our first used car, so we could get to our job, to school, to the doctor.
I know my path is full of good Samaritans.
I know my husband started back to college with the help of the GI Bill. Only with that help he was able to get an education. He and I attended graduate schools on scholarships and loans. His father provided for money down for our first home. Without that help, we could never save for that house.
So, you see, most of us are flawed from the time we are born. Without the help of family, churches, friends, and lucky breaks, we could not make the journey successfully.
25 comments:
Very true
very true rosaria
have a nice day
i have def used help along the way...and needed it surely....most recently when the company i worked for went bankrupt and took all our paychecks with them...cant live with no money...
WE need help from society and our government. We cannot make it on our own unless we are very very very lucky.
I don't think there is a person in this country who has not accepted help along the way.
Call me a bleeding heart. That's a lot better than no heart at all.
Mostly I rely on Jesus for help; he is the Great Helper. I love the spirit of America and other countries too, where we work hard to be successful and then we reach out to help others.
I so agree! There have been a few good Samaritans in my life, too!
I'm very grateful for the help I've received in my life. My real strength (help) comes from the Lord. My family and friends round out the rest. But we have a personal responsibility also. What we learn from our parents and teachers and God we can choose to take into our lives to improve it. I'm not sure about "luck". I think the real "L" word is "life"..sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad. It's how we react to what life throws at us is the result of the outcome. Blame gets us nowhere...We should acknowledge all those that have shaped our lives for good, reach out to others who need help in any way we can, and thank God everyday for the air you breath!
I think we all need each other and I think the saying *no man is an island* is perfectly true.
Some have a more difficult start than others but I don't think any one can get to 70 without some kind of problem that needs a friend or helper.
Maggie X
Nuts in May
There are so many sad stories in the area I just moved from, where poverty is rampant. I would hate to see them go without the little government help they have now.
When I think of how so many wealthy people don't care about the 47% who don't pay taxes, I think of the doctors I used to work for who earned 300 to 400k a year and didn't pay a cent in taxes. They were proud of it.
"And then I thought how close we all are to perdition, at some point in our lives." Agreed. I've often felt that chasm right beneath my feet. And, I do think luck plays a big part. Yes, initiative matters and attitude matters, but there is a great deal that we cannot ever control. Besides, who wants a world without human kindness?
Well said!
Velva
So true. No matter how big or small the help we have gotten, we also need to remember to give it, as much as we can, as often as we are able. Even if it is nothing more than a smile...
Thanks, rosaria.
I am thankful every day for my many blessings.
This is such a wonderful post, Rosaria -- so full of wisdom and truth. We've all had helping hands along the way. I was blessed with some very special teachers who encouraged me, with parents who -- will they had their issues -- loved me and thought I was smart and encouraged me to develop my talents and with an aunt who was an incredible blessing throughout my life. And I was helped in high school, college and graduate school with scholarships. And later, a very special literary agent and terrific editors -- the list goes on and on. At every juncture, I've had the good fortune to have help of all sorts along the way. I've worked hard and I've been lucky, but could not have had the life I've had without some well-timed help.
i believe we all have someone(s) in our past who helped us along the way, and for that, we should be truly grateful. every day.
47%er and earned every bit of it. But it took me some help to get there. No one ever thought I would amount to much but *shrug* I had a hand along the way, my faith in truth, my wife, and my back. And I never minded being the extended hand because I know there have been many extended to me.
Just now though it seems people tend to think that every hand extended is grabbing for something not earned or deserved or holds a gun or is clenched into a fist. That is where our divided national heart is broken. We don't know that helping another is good and allowing someone to help us helps them as well.
*sigh*
... it takes a village. I believe that.
You are so right, Rosaria. A beautiful post.
Well put, Rosaria, thanks for the post.
My hubby was one of those whose parents didn't make him brush his teeth, couldn't afford the dentist or the doctor, etc. But he was adopted and helped a long a bit more. He's worked hard to be where he is, handouts were few, but he's made something of himself. My parents gave us a hand up when we needed it, and we're both grateful for that.
Shannon at The Warrior Muse
I had parents who paid my tuition, I worked for the rest. When I married, my husband's dad forked over the money for a mobile home. After that, we were totally on our own but what a boost those two things were in good economic times. We could get teaching jobs wherever we wanted to go in the 60s. Thanks to the Democrats and JFK.
Good point :)
So very true. I have been very lucky along the way. And I'm very grateful for that. The story of the fourteen year old is just heartbreaking. And there are just to many like that.
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