210/365 - sacrifice...
365 - The 2010 Edition - July 29, 2010
Paguma's post tonight reminded me of the sacrifices our parents made - that all parents make - for their kids.. From giving up the last slice of bread, to forking out thousands of dollars for dance lessons and baseball uniforms, we do it - and never look back. I don't regret a thing that I've ever given up so that my kids could do whatever it was they needed to do..
But I'm especially reminded of a couple of things my folks did for me that must have really been hard for them at the time. We weren't poor, but we weren't rich either. With five kids, there just isn't a lot of wiggle room on the budget. So when we wanted something, we had to r-e-a-l-l-y want it... We learned all about delayed gratification, and the art of saving, and lots of other skills that have served my credit rating well over the years..
One year, the folks surprised me with an actual electric guitar. It probably cost over a hundred dollars in the mid-sixties, which would be like a thousand dollars today - at least to our family.. It was a real stretch for them, and an awesome gift for a kid my age.. I tried to teach myself to play, and I believe I even took a few lessons - but it was hopeless.. I couldn't contort my hands to create the chords - had no muscle memory - and couldn't get both hands to work together.. I tried so hard.. I knew it had been a huge investment in me, my future, and my happiness for my parents, and I really, really didn't want to let them down - but it was hopeless..
Still, I kept that guitar, hoping that I would eventually be able to stretch my hands somehow, or learn to make some kind of music with it. In fact, I still have the carcass in the closet.. Travis gutted the pick-ups out of it for some reason, and all the strings are long gone.. The Waa-Waa bar swings uselessly against the sunburst paint on it's old body... But to me, it's value is as dear as ever. Because it's a reminder that my parents loved me, and were willing to help me do whatever it was that I wanted to do in life...
210/365 - sacrifice...
365 - The 2010 Edition - July 29, 2010
Paguma's post tonight reminded me of the sacrifices our parents made - that all parents make - for their kids.. From giving up the last slice of bread, to forking out thousands of dollars for dance lessons and baseball uniforms, we do it - and never look back. I don't regret a thing that I've ever given up so that my kids could do whatever it was they needed to do..
But I'm especially reminded of a couple of things my folks did for me that must have really been hard for them at the time. We weren't poor, but we weren't rich either. With five kids, there just isn't a lot of wiggle room on the budget. So when we wanted something, we had to r-e-a-l-l-y want it... We learned all about delayed gratification, and the art of saving, and lots of other skills that have served my credit rating well over the years..
One year, the folks surprised me with an actual electric guitar. It probably cost over a hundred dollars in the mid-sixties, which would be like a thousand dollars today - at least to our family.. It was a real stretch for them, and an awesome gift for a kid my age.. I tried to teach myself to play, and I believe I even took a few lessons - but it was hopeless.. I couldn't contort my hands to create the chords - had no muscle memory - and couldn't get both hands to work together.. I tried so hard.. I knew it had been a huge investment in me, my future, and my happiness for my parents, and I really, really didn't want to let them down - but it was hopeless..
Still, I kept that guitar, hoping that I would eventually be able to stretch my hands somehow, or learn to make some kind of music with it. In fact, I still have the carcass in the closet.. Travis gutted the pick-ups out of it for some reason, and all the strings are long gone.. The Waa-Waa bar swings uselessly against the sunburst paint on it's old body... But to me, it's value is as dear as ever. Because it's a reminder that my parents loved me, and were willing to help me do whatever it was that I wanted to do in life...