I’m older than a lot of you here, so I can reflect and realize that life may have not always come to me as I had planned, but that which HAS come to me is better than I expected.
That is not to say that I haven’t had disappointments. I have dealt with tragic death, heart ache, traumatic adolescent children and a slew of other things that I would never wish on anyone.
I also know, that I have been given SO much more than I ever expected. I have traveled to places that I may have dreamed about, but never would have thought I could go to. I don’t only appreciate Art, I own it. Who’d a thunk I would even own an airplane
I also, have a sort of a mission. Since I know and understand poverty, but now live pretty well, I have a responsibility to remind people who don’t know what it’s like to go to bed hungry, or to choose between homelessness or crappy childcare for your kids, what it’s like in the “real” world..
When pompous people talk about healthcare reform as if it is a privilege for those who have it through their employer, it is my job to get in their face and say, “TODAY PEOPLE ARE DIEING!”
If it weren’t for the heartache and disappointment in my life, I don’t know if I would have the courage or the empathy to stand up to the ignorance of wealth.
For all John Edwards faults, he did have one thing right. There ARE two Americas, and I have lived in both. Many wealthy (and even middle class) people go their whole life and never have a clue what people in their own city go through.