I grew up in a very large family. Both my parents were from large families. All 4 of my grandparents were from large families. I have come to realize this was the norm for farmers which my family descends from. Needless to say, no one in my family grew to become wealthy. It's pretty difficult to pay for your 10 kids to go to college when you yourself haven't attended.
I was fortunate enough to make some choices my siblings couldn't and I received a college education while in the military. That education has opened opportunities that aren't available for people with a high school education only. The monetary compensation for a days work being the most obvious result of those opportunities.
Which brings me to my impetus for writing this diary. I was recently talking with my sister about being in need of a vacation and I debating on where I wanted to spend my vacation. I told her I couldn't decide what kind of vacation I wanted or where I wanted to spend it.
I was vacillating between Europe for a site seeing, touristy kind of vacation or something slower like a Caribbean island with just the sun, beaches and relaxation.
I asked for her opinion, like I would any of my friends.
There was perhaps the longest pause I have ever had from her before. Long enough that I asked her if she was still on the phone and when the pause continued on even after that I started thinking I had said something wrong or offensive.
When she finally started talking again the first thing she said was, "I'm Sorry about that. I didn't mean to start crying, but it's hard sometimes to listen to you talk about going to Europe or the Caribbean like that. The way you talk, it's like you're at blockbuster deciding on what movie to rent."
Then she said, "You know that the furthest I've ever been from my home is the time I visited you for a week and you had to pay for everything. I have two kids who are nearly grown now and the furthest they've ever been away from home is on a fishing trip with their dad. Our vacations are always within driving distance and they usually involve a campsite, not a hotel. That's all we can afford."
Then she said, "Well at least there is finally someone in our family that I can point to as an example of what a college education can mean."
Then she said she had to go and start dinner.