Working in retail is not the most glamorous thing you could be doing. But when the school you are teaching at in one state closes down, and you move far away from your friends and family with no prospects of anywhere else hiring teachers--ESPECIALLY not full time ones--it is completely reasonable to take a job, ANY job, that will let you work for trade of pay.
Because of Jon's hard work, we are out of debt, we have been able to get through college without any loans, and our family is taken care of each month with a place to live and food to eat. Because of his patience, he was able to get his foot in the door as an adjunct faculty member at BYU-Idaho. In the meantime he writes, and submits his work for publication, and researches doctorate programs, and runs a literary journal. His first priority is to care for our family, in whatever ways he can, and then still tries to pursue his dreams and not give up on being a full-time writer someday. I don't find anything more respectable than a person that can humble themselves and stick with a job they don't love, in order to provide for the people they do love.
So for anyone who feels that they "can't respect" someone who is working 60+ hours a week and putting aside their wants for true needs, take a look in the mirror and tell me what you would do in the same situation. This is the real problem with America. And it's not about respect for your elders, or respect for your teachers, or respect for the government, or the government's respect for you, or any of that. This is about respect for each other, and realizing that when you say something, there is a human being at the other end of those comments, and this goes in all directions. It's not about respecting _____, it's about respecting people.
Heavenly Father doesn't love someone less because of where they work, and neither should we.
When you graduate from college and realize that jobs aren't always just handed to you, come back and see me.
1 comment:
I respect our husbands working jobs that they do not love, but do it because they love us, their families. Jon is an incredibly hard worker. I also admire the fact that he still works toward his dreams and goals in writing.
You guys are amazing! Thanks for being great examples.
Post a Comment