The All American Dream

    We all want a piece of the All American pie don’t we? What is your view on the ” American Dream” that we all hear about every day of our lives?  Is it the awesome job that you have, the amount of money in the bank, the cars in your driveway or the house you live in? Maybe it’s been you keeping up with the Jones’s so to speak.  Are we really living or are we living simply to maybe one day attain what it is we think is having our piece of the American Pie. I guess most who would look at me and our life would say that we have that to a degree.  Almost like “Leave it to beaver”.  I’m a stay at home mom, we have three children, our own home, two dogs and a cat, half an acre of land that’s fenced in, cars in the driveway and enough money in the bank to get by. I have a husband of sixteen years whom works hard everyday to provide for his family and a heart full of love for all of  us. So most would look at us and say ” Yeah, they’re living the dream”

But are we really? I guess you would need to step back and evaluate it. Some people don’t have what we have and in their opinions, they’re the one who is living the American dream. It’s all in how you look at it honestly. I recently read an article of a girl who, in her mind, had the American Dream in the palm of her hand. She lived in New York, had an amazing job making almost a hundred thousand dollars a year, she had her freedom to do what she wanted and the money to surely back it up. But, she wasn’t happy. She was so disconnected from the world she was miserable. Her life consisted of looking at screens all day, whether it be computer, IPAD, phone or television, that’s all she did.  She had friends but they were so busy working, they only connected to hang out maybe once a month. She had everything she needed, but nothing she wanted.

She decided one day to simply walk away from it all. She quit her  job in New York, broke the lease on her  apartment and moved to the Caribbean. She knew no one there and I guess that’s where her freedom began.  In short, she chose to change her dream so to speak and start anew. What did she do you ask? She got a job scooping ice cream making ten dollars an hour. She gave up her job making ninety-five thousand a year to scoop ice cream in the Caribbean. But you know what, good for her. I applaud her tenacity and boldness to do that. She found her “Happy”.  So that’s where we need to start when we look at ourselves. Is it really important to have that title? Is it really important to be able to say, I work here and this is what I make and this is where our kids are going to college in the fall and yada yada yada?

Shouldn’t we be happy, don’t we deserve it? She made a statement in this article that says  ” If your constantly thinking you need a vacation, maybe what you really need is a new life.”  I would challenge all of us to take a deep look at what we’re doing and what truly makes us happy. If what you’re doing makes you happy and you love your life, then I will be the first to say, Congratulations to you. I personally love my life and all God has given us and blessed us with.  I’ll be the first to say that.  I’m also going to be the first to say that I would love to move to an island and live at the beach. Simply because that’s when our family is the most connected. We get to be with each other and talk and just be a family…together. It’s not broken time between work and school and anything else that may take place during the day. On vacation, the time is ours to do what we want and when we want.

I will encourage you all to take a look at that article. It’s on Countryliving.com or you can simply google the title of it ” Why I gave up a $95,000 Job to Move to an Island to Scoop Ice cream.” Her article really made my wheels turn and when you begin to look at the big picture, you start to evaluate your own circumstances and think of others’. I take no credit for what she wrote and by no means am I trying to plagiarise. I am grateful she wrote that article and I’m grateful the Lord brought it to my sight on Facebook.  In closing, we shouldn’t be so programmed into this world. We’re only passing through anyways. My home is in Heaven.  Don’t get “stuck” trying to live up to the expectations of the world or the people in it. You have to do what is best for you and your family (if your married). God will guide you where you are to be, you must only seek him and you shall find him.