REAL LIFE

Lucky

By Joanna, age 20, South Wales, United Kingdom
Sweet Designs Featured Writer

I was having a conversation with a friend the other day about how some people we know get brand new cars bought for them and have their university tuition fees paid for them by their parents. As she was telling me about her friend who'd had a new car bought for him, I thought about how lucky I am not to come from a background like that.

This might sound like an odd comment, but what I mean is that I have been brought up to appreciate the value of money and possessions without taking everything for granted in that sense. Of course, not everyone who gets things bought and paid for them takes it for granted, but I'm really only talking about those that do - the spoilt teens that everyone knows who have a tantrum when they don't get their own way and expect extortionate amounts to be spent on them throughout the year, and rely on parents for spending money rather than looking for a part time job alongside studies. The kind of attitude that these kinds of people display shows a selfishness and a lack of compassion and concern for others that I just can't really get my head around.

I grew up with a father who worked seven days a week for several years to support my family, and I think I've taken on board a lot of that myself, as I've always worked to afford the things I want, and am very reluctant to ask for anything from anyone, money-wise. I think that being that way, rather than dependent on some one else's paycheck, is a huge boost for confidence and independence, which is important to a lot of girls today.

Further to that, I saw a shocking piece of news footage recently with regards to the tsunami in Japan. A lady whose house had been swept away was saying to a reporter that all she had been spared was her life, and she wasn't sure yet if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Now I can't claim to understand on any level what that lady and anyone else who has been personally affected by the tragedies in Japan can be going through, but this gave me food for thought. I later realised that most probably this lady had lost loved ones and maybe that's more so what she was referring to, but at first I possibly mistook her meaning. If what that lady was saying was that she was nothing without her belongings, I think this is a sad outlook to have indeed, as who you are is contained within you, not within the things you possess.

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