Tuer le Temps

• I know what it means to work hard • Some weeks I had a seven day work-week • I have walked over three miles to get to work • I woke up before the sun to walk those three miles • I have hand whipped my own whipped cream and meringue • I have never purchased a pre-made pie crust • I have worked and supported myself on minimum wage • I have scrubbed floor drains and know manual labor • I chose an undergraduate field of study for my education entertainment purposes, not as a means to a career • I have read paper books...for funsies • 99% of my fabulous wardrobe consists of thrift, resale, super sale, and hand-me-down items • I know what it means to be poor in a materialistic society • I know what it means to be rich in one's poverty • I have been cursed out simply for being in an old lady's hate-dar • I know what it means to respect your elders: yes ma'am,  yes sir, no sir, smiling and nodding at an old lady as she curses you out..

Most of all I'd like to tell them that I have seen the best of humanity while I was at my worst, that I have struggled. I won't tell them in a way that guilts them, but (hopefully) in a way that makes them less afraid. Less afraid to start small, less afraid to sit outside the comforts of modern society.  They will know that if they ever find themselves in my position, they will have someone who truly understands,  who honestly knows that things get better. I am struggling. But at least I can think of every hardship as something that I can't wait to tell my kids.