Why work

 

The farther we get from our Puritan forefathers the better off we are. 

In the beginning work was to keep us alive. We had enough children so that some of them would survive to plant our fields, chop our wood and care for us when we were too feeble to do these things ourselves. By the time I was born there were more choices, but most people worked to put food on the table and pay the bills. 

People found reasons to be satisfied with whatever work they did, but they didn't necessarily choose work that they felt would bring them satisfaction. That kind of work was for dreamers, not real people. It never seemed to occur to many of them that they could choose to do something else. 

I was the exception in our family. The only one who did not find a job and do it until it ate me alive and spit out the bones. Now I suppose I am paying for that in their eyes, but the truth is I still need a job that I feel is truly meaningful. 

For years it was guiding my own children while they found the skills they needed to pursue their dreams. Then I worked in preschool teaching children to love learning, so it only makes sense that I end up back there again. 

I truly believe that if we love learning then the rest of life will eventually fall into place, so giving children both the desire and the skills to do that is a worthy job. It takes creativity and patience and perseverance. I have all those things in abundance, so I think going to work at my age is the best thing I can do.