Fragile Times

I work in a fairly affluent area. The parents with whom I work tend to be fairly well off, but lately, I can tell that things are changing.

A mother of one of my students told me of a new job she has where she is selling paving stones for residential and commercial properties. She was employed with the performing arts center here in town, but as far as I can tell, she was laid off. When purse strings tighten, culture usually suffers first, and so, she was let go, moving from one vulnerable job to another. She told me how lucky she is to have a job in such down times. I pray she holds onto that job selling paving stones, both for her and her daughter's sake.

By the same token, I know that B's job is still very fragile. Yes, what he does, as a financial reporting analyst, is a job that is needed in good times and bad, but we both know how things could go sour in the blink of an eye. I am very thankful that we are still okay, even if he will not receive a raise this year. This is the first year, since he graduated from college, in which he will not receive a raise. Still, I'm okay with the steady employment, even if it means no raise.

How many families are hanging on by a tenuous thread? How many families have only one pay check separating them between having a home and being homeless? How many are willing to admit just how badly off they actually are? Credit cards have been a great aversion to reality, but it seems as though fewer and fewer have this route to take as an alternative.

For now, I will continue to thank my lucky stars, and I will continue to help out where and when I can. I suppose my biggest concern is helping so many more people who will need it. I also hope that those who need it will actually ask for help, rather than make their families suffer in silence, and are too proud to admit when things are not so good.

I know this has a depressing tone, but I am a little sad today. I can say, though, that times like these also force me to take stock of what we do have, and that the most important things are not things at all. The most important things are people.