No Longer an Idealist... (Yes Politics)

I was raised to think I could have it all. My wonderful parents did not treat me different because I was born a girl, instead of the boy they had anticipated. They took their extremism to a different level, I think, to show me that I could do whatever I set my mind to as long as I worked hard. They instilled the American Dream in me. It worked. I labored continously in school and felt compelled to achieve to the best degree. Although I had difficulties with school, it became my passion. I didn't take the AP classes because I thought I could do them, I took them because I knew it would be a challenge every single day to just get through the coursework. It was worth it. I succeeded in ways I wouldn't have otherwise because I stuck through them. Then came real life, that of a college student. There too I assumed my role of hardworking student and it payed off as well. I successfully graduated with an honorary degree in one of my passionate fields. But there were many who helped me get to that place. I spent endless hours being tutored, missed great events, took homework to the inlaws for the weekend, and sacrificed precious family time to achieve one of my lifelong dreams, to receive a bachelor's degree from an upstanding University.

Soon afterwards, I became a Realist. The harsh reality behind all of this is that I have staunchly fought against becoming a Realist my whole life. From my perceptions of Realists, they are selfish, cunning, and will do whatever it takes to come out on top. They will compete to the extreme with other countries and use them as pawns for their own means and ends. It sounds like a problem, and one I would rather not align myself to.

However, here is the punch line. In order to succeed in this generation, we have to have drive and competition to find the scarce jobs that are out there. We have to worry about ourselves first and once that is settled, and only then, perhaps we'll look to help the people around us. I have to protect my son and my family from what is out in the world. I cannot let anything get in the way of that. But drifting away from my selfish and unmoralistic ways, there is still an Idealist inside of me. The Idealist that seeks out world peace and believes it is everyone's moral obligation to help their brothers and sisters have a better life. I cannot shake that from my mind because I was raised by Idealists. I come from a huge hispanic family that took care of their own. They still do to a certain extent and that is beautiful. I was raised by a village and that makes all the difference in the world. I think that the American culture is loosing their family culture. Jobs are spread out throughout the United States and the world and the family circle is broken. It is sad for me to see people who don't even know who their first cousins are. But that is what the job market and changing social issues have done. It isn't necessarily a bad thing. People are becoming more perceptive and educated regarding social issues. Certain stigmas are starting to dwindle and fade in our generation (example: racism, women in the work force, etc.). That is a great thing. But at the same time, family values aren't what they were in the past. I am a firm believer that we do leave our families and create new ones with our spouses. Nevertheless, I am not opposed to being near family that can help raise and teach my children. Communities that do that have less violence and more unity. There is more respect for their Elders and the balance is clear.... There are also no nursing homes in those places. I understand that circumstances occur by which nursing homes are used to help the elderly or people with other handicaps heal from surgeries or other maladies. But I don't think nursing homes were intended to have old people cartered there for the rest of their existence. How are we supposed to learn from our elders if they're no longer around? How will we teach our children about their grandparents and respect if they see their families send their grandparents to homes because they don't want to deal with them? I know what it's like to have a grandparent or two in the house growing up. Yes, sometimes it was difficult and other times it was wonderful. I had excellent opportunities to sit down, learn of my ancestors and the best family recipes. There is possibly no other way I could have been able to do this.

So am I really a Realist? More than likely not. But sometimes I feel the thoughts changing in my brain and I realize how much easier life would be if I just worried about myself all the time. That would create a lot of free time and I could do as I wanted. However, I know that man/woman was not created to be alone. That is why Heavenly Father created Families, so we wouldn't get lost or lonely. If we stick together, we will be able to overcome more challenges than we could on our own. So perhaps, I'll become a iderealist. I'll stick to believing we all have the moral capacity to be good yet we have the choice to do so. I'll also remember that sometimes you do have to take care of you first and then fix world problems. I wish I could still believe that I can have it all, but alas I've learned that sometimes life just isn't so.

This just helped me figure out what I am. Once again, research and expression has helped me figure out how to better think out my arguments.