Ever since I was a little girl, I knew I wanted two kids; a boy and a girl. It has never not been a part of my mind as I thought about my future. Consciously, I wasn't completely sold on the whole American dream, 'green-lawn-with-white-picket-fence' vision, but in a way, I was still following that conditioning. I had this idea that you sort of somehow effortlessly flow from being a young adult in your early twenties to being able to physically, mentally, emotionally, and financially handle children. It is only in the last year or so that this idea has completely changed for me.
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Many millenials are then forced to life with their parents since they have no way of developing a savings, let alone paying their bills and debt. For this reason, they are then put down for 'not leaving the nest' or 'not being enough of an adult' by those that don't understand the societal and economic cirumstances that keep them there in the first place. Not to mention that the workforce here isn't always an easy thing to handle these days...
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| Whoever said there are lazy millenial workers out there need to show me where they are, because I've only seen hardworking ones in my community. Many I know work multiple jobs, sometimes working part-time jobs all around the hours of their full-time jobs! |
The job I finally did get and decide to pursue had a very lengthy training (where pay was minimum wage for over a month), and yet I somehow learned nearly all of the tricks-of-the-trade and how to successfully perform the job from my co-workers rather than the manager. It was a relatively fun job that actually never left me looking at the clock, wondering when it was time to go. But that was mostly because it was incredibly fast-paced, physically and mentally-exhasuting job that was a constant balancing act of multitasking.
While this job has served me over the last 6 months, it was also a very hostile environment to work in. Five co-workers (who were all wonderful, professional people and hard workers) have quit in the short time that I have worked there, one was fired for reasonably expressing the unfairness in the workplace to the manager, and all of us nearly all quit at the same time after the company's HR department refused to help us. There's been emotional meltdowns, lies, severe unprofessionalism, and a lot of both time and extra hard work gone unpaid for. I am shocked at the level of consistent unfairness and disrespect I witnessed.
Overall, I feel an unbelievable sense of freedom after recently leaving this job. And yet I am so grateful for it, as well as the job search prior, as it all reflected to me the sick way we treat our fellow humans in the business world--I think I needed to go through it to fully understand it and how I can support those in my community. As I reflect back, I can't say I've had a single job with a company--big or small--that left me feeling remotely well-treated and cared for.
Mind that when I say "cared for," I do not mean working a little to profit a lot, I mean working hard for a professional business that has honest, down-to-earth morals, where I am not disrespected inside or out of the workspace, and am paid a reasonable amount that is promised to me for the work I put into it. That's really all I am looking for out of those jobs. Perhaps I have simply been a part of only the less fortunate jobs out there, but I get the impression that this is a situation that many of us have at least experienced once--that is, if we are not already currently experiencing it.
When you meet a new person, one of the most traditional things to ask is, "What do you do?" meaning, "What is your job/career?". While inquiring about hobbies/interests may be part of why you ask the question to begin with, that aspect almost always comes second. If one takes time off of work for personal reasons, it can be looked down upon by peers. Most, if not many jobs, are working within coporations, often a hierarchal system that is set in place by whoever is in the very top position, who is often paid exponentially more than those working at the bottom.
As I look at this messed up system and difficulty to financially thrive, I think, "How could I possibly do this and support a family?" The only ways I can clearly see is that you perhaps studied how to be a doctor, an engineer, or are involved in some other well-paying field. Or, of course, you just happen to be born into a very wealthy family. Even graduating from college does not guarantee you a good job; I have multiple peers who, after getting their masters, will land minimum wage jobs right after graduation to make ends meet and try to chip away at their debt. This is quite insulting to the time and energy it took for phD students to acquire the knowledge and passion they currently have within their degree. It's also an incredible shame to our society; when the educated (and our educators!) are not given a decent enough means to live from the earnings in their field where they cannot adequately focus their time and energy on their work, we are severely missing out on the knowledge, the science, the studies, etc. that they have to help our species grow and expand.
Taking care of children is also exponentially expensive. Even when we don't think at all about the enormity of college tuition, expenses are very high. There's food, diapers, clothes (that they grow out of), utilties (water, heat, etc.) in a safe home, and whatever additional furniture/materials needed to raise a healthy child. You might argue that there are ways to cut expenses, and there certainly are. For instance, children's books can be found at libraries, thrift stores have plenty of affordable clothes, family and friends might be able to hand down cribs, strollers, etc. But even then, for many families find that this is not enough to be afforadable. And in addition to these expenses, there's also daycare.
If one or two parents spend all day working to financially support their child, that child needs to be watched. If you are already working at minimum wage, how do you pay a sitter at minimum wage to take care of your kids for the same amount of hours that you are working? Even parents on benefits struggle; SNAP (national food benefits program; food stamps) benefits have been severely cut, especially in this last year due to the brutal tax cuts that have been recently made.
Mind you, if you do have kids or are highly motivated to have kids, I write all of this with no intention to insult or press judgement; despite the climactic repurcussions and potential financial struggles you may be facing, we do serevely need a generation that is smarter, more conscientious, more open-minded, and more empathetic than we are if we want to do our best at saving the life on this planet. This just gives a greater responsibility to parents nowadays; for those who do choose to have children, it is of the utmost importance to raise them with the right morals, with special focus on teaching empathy, openmindedness, and pursuing truth. We need a new generation that will be willing to continue to courageously fight for what's morally right despite what our culture, media, or government may say. In addition to that, we need a generation that is caring enough to support those outside of ourselves, despite our differences; to me, that includes not only humans, but the life that is also trying to survive on this planet.
That's why I am very excited to be working on children's books to teach good morals in how to care for the earth and one another. The last six months I have been so distracted from the part-time job that I have been severly disappointed in my own lack of posts (both blog and social media) as well as greatly reduced focus on my own work. But I am so happy and excited to be back, doing what I feel is the best way I can contribute right now. Up until this last year, I dreamed of doing Reiki full-time and helping people, but my focus has dramatically changed to helping the life on this planet. After all, humans are the true infestation on the earth, right?
While I admit writing this post is certainly cathartic and healing for my own self, I truly write this for all of you hard-working people out there. I hear you, and I feel you, deeply so. Whether you are working in the corporate world, for a small private company, or just doing you (like my crazy self!), I encourage you to always remain true to yourself and to get out of situations that may be toxic for you. While I personally have left the coporate "machine" for my own personal standards and morals, starting your own business as millenials in this economy is much harder than the past.
So, simply do what makes you happy as much as you can, and do what you need to in order to survive. Millenials have become a new generation of transitions, and less so of stability--may all of us embrace this cultural shift and focus on quality of life more than quantity. This world has come into an extremely pivotal time; more and more dire situations are coming to light, whether it's close to home or affects all life globally. It's becoming harder and harder to have the time and enough true rest to replenish our physical, mental, and emotional systems. So may we all be gentle with ourselves and those around us, for all of our sakes--empathy is very important right now. We are all in this together, and the more we are there to support ourselves and one another (and stand up for what is right!), the better off we all are.
While we cannot always control the circumstances around us, we can control how we meet those circumstances. Hence, this is a perfect time to consider the following: Which aspects are unhealthy and need to shift out of your life? What aspects of your life need to be honored and have more focus put upon them? May this new year be one of courage, integrity, and truly reaping the rewards from following our hearts. Wishing you all big, big blessings for this new year; may we instigate positive change in our own lives and beyond!
As always, thank you very much for reading, dear viewer. I know this wasn't the most positive of posts (nor straightforward by any means, haha), but I felt these issues are pervasive and important enough to have a conversation about regardless. Speaking of conversations, please feel free to comment below; I would truly love to hear what you all would like to focus on for this new year! :)
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