Once my mom got out of school and found a nice job, we moved out to Eagan and I went to a high school named Eastview. If any of you know this school, it was considered the "snobby" school with a bunch of rich kids. I didn't believe it at first, but I soon found out why. Every house was gigantic for no reason. Some people I knew had 3 family members and 6 bedrooms in their house. Why? Living in a bad part of town made me realize that it's not worth buying expensive clothes and cars. I learned the value of a dollar at a young age. Going to high school, I would hear people complaining about how their parents didn't get them a car for their 16th birthday or how they didn't put enough money into their bank account for the weekend.. To me, it was pathetic. My parents now make a decent amount of money but I still got a job as soon as I could because I could never imagine asking my parents for money. If I could choose, I would much rather live my life again exactly how it was compared to a life with a lot of money. My relationship with my family is stronger than many people I know because that's all we had. I see some friends now and they constantly fight with their parents. My roommate is now a good friend of mine, but I look down on her so much because of how bitchy she is towards her parents. They're paying for her college and just about everything else in her life. She's never had a job, yet she thinks it's normal to tell her mom to shut up and give her money.
The point I'm getting to is I will always be the type of person to value the relationships I have with family and friends over money any day. I love my life and I love the fact that I have so many people who are proud of me and I wouldn't change that for anything. I am me today because I learned how to appreciate the non materialistic things in life just by watching my parents and what they have gone through to make their children as well as themselves happy. I couldn't thank them more for shaping me into who I am today.
I think it is very important that you have learned that there is more to life than having money and 'things'. It is especially important that you learned this lesson at a young age compared to many others. I have cousins who are millionaires and who have grown up going on extravagant vacations and being able to buy what ever that want. The older sibling is just starting his freshman year in college. I think it is great that he is going to school when in reality, he wouldn't have to work a day in his life if he didn't want to. The younger sibling is a sophomore in high school. I think she sometimes forgets how lucky she is to live a luxurious lifestyle. Although the wealthy lifestyle may come in handy sometimes, money is not what makes happiness.
ReplyDeleteI agree that money is not worth more than family. Society has made it so that many people forget that family is worth more than what any amount of money can buy and to place materialism as a symbol of wealth and happiness. My family was not the way it is now just like yours. When my parents came to the United States, they were refugees from Cambodia escaping the Khmer Rouge regime. At first they had to live with other refugees, yet slowly worked their way up to being middle class, owning their own homes and starting a family. My parents has always told me to not take money for granted and that if I want to be something more, I just have to work hard for it, but to cherish family more than money. It's fascinating how different people can be when it comes to money or family and how money can make people forget about family values.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great lesson that you learned. For me the situation is kind of reversed. I grew up in Naperville, a very well off suburb of Chicago. Being surrounded by people who bought coach purses in 5th grade, I developed a very spoiled attitude even though my parents weren't the ones actually spoiling me. I felt as if I was entitled to money, and coming to college on a tight budget was a huge wakeup call. I wish I would have learned what you did at a young age.
ReplyDeleteI had a slightly different upbringing but I definitely agree that money isn't everything. I also agree with the need to respect your parents and appreciate them for everything they do for you. Whenever I have a success in my life I always stop to think about how I got there and who taught me those values. Now that I am on college and look back on mu childhood I wished I would have put my family first in many instances because now it is not so easy for me to do that. I have definitely heard of all the stereotypes associated with towns like Eastview and can't imagine moving from one end to the other in the sense that you did.
ReplyDelete