People have often called me a dreamer because I have these idealistic points of view about how life should be. I don’t feel as though my ideas have the romantic air about them that others do, I just think that people have stopped believing in those things.
Sure, I know that the world has changed dramatically over the last 5, 10, 25, 50, even 75 years, but when did we stop believing that we could still have our cake and eat it too? Why is it necessary to work on a Sunday, or any part of the weekend? Of course, some businesses would need to be open: hardware stores, restaurants, maybe some retail shops – businesses that sell the items or services that people would use on weekends should be open. What is so important in the world that an attorney must work at least one day out of every weekend?
When did we stop going to the “Jersey Shore” for weekends? When did we stop taking car rides to see relatives? When did we stop spending time with our families on the weekends to go into the office?
My favorite scene in the movie Eddie and the Cruisers is when they’re at the Jersey Shore writing music. Aside from the great dialogue that occurs, the scene in the background makes me wonder how and why we ever stopped doing these types of things.
I’m not saying the world has to stop on the weekends, because obviously, it doesn’t. What I’m saying is that we are so wrapped up in our careers, we have forgotten to live our lives, to show our children to live their lives for others and not for their career.
My thoughts on this began on the other day on the 29th, which would’ve been my grandfathers 87th birthday. I thought about when my mom was growing up in Buffalo; they used to go across to Crystal Beach, in Canada, and spend the weekend at a family cottage on the shore with other relatives. There was a great amusement park there, which has been closed for some 15 years, but it holds special memories for my mom and for my dad as well. When I was growing up, we went to the beach a little less often than my parents, but still, I had the experience of living that sort of life and as I’ve grown older, I wonder where that has gone and if we’ll ever get it back.
I think this all goes back to the “funk” I’ve been in and the aggravation I am feeling with having to earn a degree to get the job I want. I had a conversation with someone about this last week and they spoke about how going through college shows discipline and the ability to think. My response was that I worked for the same company for 15 years; I rose through the ranks to get to where I was a year ago when I left. I did this without spending $100K on an education and earned money instead. Isn’t that the equivalent to 4 years of college without the partying?
Nowadays, if I want to find the job that allows me to go to the Jersey Shore on weekends, I have to get a 4-year degree to prove that I am worthy. Is there anything LESS romantic than that?
Of course, I live a couple thousand miles away from the Jersey Shore, but that’s an entirely different problem!
No comments:
Post a Comment