Money fortunately has not been the foremost thing ever in my mind. However, it does help to be able to pay ones bills and to be able to purchase the things that one needs. When I married my husband, who was a college teacher at the time, I realized that we would never be rich.
My whole adult life I have never had a lot of money, but I have had enough to fill my needs. The thing about not having a lot is that your children grow up knowing that they need to work for things. In spite of the lack of monetary assets, I have had a very good and fulling life.
Some times things get in the way of enjoying the beauty of nature. When we lived in Vermont, the boys and I had a great deal of fun walking through the fields and woods. We lived outside of town in a redone one room school house. Our eight foot tall windows looked out to open fields and to the view of Burke Mountain. There was a stream, a tributary of the Connecticut River, that ran behind our house. We would walk through our woods down a hill to the stream. Our golden retriever, Cedar, would beg to be allowed to run down to the river for a swim on hot days.
The boys and I would go up a hill across from our house and pick blackberries. We found part of an old orchard right next to the old school house. We picked small apples and I made apple sauce. It was some of the best I ever had. Maybe it was because we found the apples and made the sauce ourselves.
Making something yourself from scratch gives you such a great sense of achievement. My mother made a lot of my clothes as I was growing up. No one else had dresses like mine. When I was complimented on my new dress, I would smile and say proudly, "My Mother made it, Thank you."
I started writing this about money not meaning everything. Because people relate money with class. Having class has nothing to do with money. You could have all the money in the world and not have class. According to what class is when linked to monetary standards, I fall into the lower class. However the way I was raised and the education that I have as well as my manners says something quite different. Class should not be judged by money but by a whole different standard.
After the civil war, the south was impoverished. Families who were once wealthy plantation owners were hard pressed to make a living. My great grandmother was born just after the civil war. She was taught to walk with her head held high and her back straight. I remember her as a ninety year old lady who took a walk every afternoon with her cane. She walked as if she were a queen. She was regal and a lady in every possible way. ( Viola Mae Spence Jones) Our family was instilled with the idea of who we were. We were brought up to be ladies and gentlemen. Money was essential, but not the most important thing. Manners, education, and how to handle yourself in society were very important. As far as we were concerned no one was better than we were. We not above being kind and thoughtful of others. Class is how you act and how you treat other people, not how much money you have.
No comments:
Post a Comment