WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP? - NO!
I had some sort of revelation the other day.
For those of you do not know, in the United States there is a government run school system commonly called "public education," although it is not really public and the exact amount of education that occurs there is debatable. Often, it is indoctrination that takes place, not education. Critical thinking is not even on the menu and it is the Department of Labor that provides a lot of the guidance to the Department of Education. This is because part of the purpose of the "public education" system is to train the youth grow up and become a workhorse for the system that the government has already put in place.
From a very early age children are asked "What do you want to be when you grow up?" The unfortunate reply expected to this question is some sort of job title. A doctor, a lawyer, a farmer, a pilot... the options are almost without limit. However, it is not our "profession" that identifies us, in my opinion, nor what everyone's goal needs to be "when they grow up."
Many children have no idea what they want "to be" when they grow up. Sometimes this question remains unanswered into adulthood. I am not bashing anyone who aspires to a certain profession. We are all free to choose if we would like to work a certain job or not. However, I personally am opting out of answering this question in the traditional manner.
Whatever job I may or may not work will eventually pass. It is not my goal in life to build bridges, mow lawns, be a politician, or lay hardwood flooring. It is not my goal to become a cashier, drive a forklift, sell used cars, or be a TV host. Even if I wanted to do such things, they would eventually pass and then I would too.
For @papa-pepper, what I want to be when I grow up is simple.
A husband and a father.
Yes, it is simple, but it is also extreme. To live out my days loving my wife and raising my children is more important to me than any job. If I could accomplish my goals of being a husband and father without working a job then I would opt for that.
Too often it seems that too many people are too busy earning a living to actually enjoy living a life. It is not that kind of living that I desire. Sure, I work my butt off and have worked at a lot of jobs in my time, but they are to help me fulfill my goals as a husband and father, not just to have the job title or work in that field.
Once I retire, hopefully I will still have @mama-pepper by my side. It looks like only death can separate us, so that goal should be achievable. No matter how good I could be at most jobs, eventually I would have to give them up and retire I don't want to have to "retire" from what is most important to me, therefore, it can't be a profession. Also, I think that too many people look back at the end of their lives and wish that they had spent more time with their spouses and children (if they have any) rather than wishing that they would have spent more time at the office.
At some point last week I actually answered the question, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" with "A husband and a father." I had been doing some thinking on that subject previously, but actually answering the question that way got me thinking about the whole deal a little more.
It is this goal that caused @papa-pepper to move to Arkansas with @mama-pepper and the @little-peppers. It is this goal that is fueling our current lifestyle change and progression towards the homesteading, self-sufficient lifestyle. The less bills we have to pay and the more of our own needs we take care of ourselves, the less money we will need. The less money that we need, the better the probability that we can earn however much we need from home.
If breeding animals, propagating plants, selling produce, and blogging on steemit can provide for whatever financial needs that we have, then I will have more time to focus on being a husband and a father. Obviously, I am exercising my freedom to evaluate my own life, goals, and purpose here, and I am only sharing my opinion. Yours may be different, and you are free to conclude otherwise. I just wanted to share some of my recent thoughts with all of you. Enjoy them for what they are worth.
As always, I'm @papa-pepper and here's the proof:
proof-of-husband-and-father
Until next time…
Don’t waste your time online, invest it with steemit.com
What about what a child NEEDS when he grows up? Rather than basing everything on wants and wishes, the basic and spiritual needs of a person should be top priority!
I could write quite a bit on this topic myself.
You should! Sounds like you have some good ideas!
Thanks for the encouragement. I am not usually much for sharing, but I am beginning to see the need to share what I know about it. @papa-pepper knows what I mean. While over sharing seems to be the norm nowadays, I think the way this is done by him works on a lot of levels.
You should! No kidding, the default setting of fulfilling wants and desires ruins many a person.
When I caught on to this concept, I started to make some decisions that were no longer knee-jerk, self-centered ones. Thankfully, I got this somewhat under my belt before I got married and had children. There were a lot of things I couldn't learn in school from professional teachers and superintendents, and this is the prime example.
Public school wasn't exactly a highlight in the grand scheme of things in my life. I am who I am in spite of the Department of Education and its guidelines.
@papa-pepper Glad things are working out for you and the rest of the peppers.
You my friend are a true Multi-potentialite.
full steem ahead!
Thanks @streetstyle! I can't wait to meet up with you in person one day!
Papa you've described exactly the situation we're going through now with our teenage kids.
There's an unbelievable push for kids to "Go to College".
It's pounded into them starting in elementary school even though it's selling them into economic slavery.
I'm trying to make them grasp the concept of entrepreneurship; sure go to college if you want, but do it to better yourself, not so you can get a good job.
And don't take on debt that will take you until your retirement to pay off.
Jobs suck; they don't last forever and you usually don't get advanced notice when they go away.
And that sucks too.
My wife has both a Bachelor's Degree and a J.D. (yes, she's an attorney, and a damned good one).
Contrary to popular belief, most attorneys are in debt up to their eyeballs. If not from Law School, very often from buying their "Partnership" in a Law Firm.
And Law Firms turn otherwise bright, compassionate people into soulless dicks.
We're both glad she "wasn't a good fit".
I don't ever want to "retire", I want to do work that I find interesting and challenging right up until the day I die, on my 120th birthday in a freak skydiving accident.
Wow, excellent comment. I am a strong advocate for a debt free life.
Excellent post.
I'm glad to have finally found people with similar values.
Me too!
What I love about your comment is the statement "go to college if you want, but do it to better yourself, not so you can get a good job". THIS is what it is about. Attending a largely liberal arts school, I knew a lot of students studying literature, music and the arts who said their parents weren't very encouraging or supportive because "they weren't going to support themselves with a useless degree". But they were artists! They were happy! Life has become about unimportant things like jobs and we are forgetting to live by what we enjoy. I went into the field of animal care and biology knowing I wouldn't be making much money (luckily with my parents supporting and respecting my decision). I work long hours, take home little pay, but at the end of the day, I don't think I'd be happier anywhere else!
Your post is full of great marriage and parenting advice. You have a beautiful family.
Thanks @marymg2014! I am glad that you think!
Not all of us public educators are indoctrinators.
I teach blockchain technology to my Business Spanish class, our Biomedical Engineering teacher doesn't allow students to get away without developing critical thinking skills. Our Family Consumer Sciences crew is incredible at developing life-long skills.
We have multiple teachers that push back against administrators/lawmakers that don't have the students' best interests at heart.
I know you're railing more against the system than the teachers, but just remember that those closest to the kids often have their back.
Thanks!
Right, I agree. It is the system not the individuals. Thank you.
Yeah, there are a lot of wonderful educators in the system but unfortunately they are bucking a system designed to prepare kids to play their part as workers and debt slaves, something required to sustain the American consumer economy.
It's part of a larger plan.
Individualism and critical thinking are discouraged and group-think rewarded. This also makes it easier for those at the top to influence public opinion and control the masses.
Kids that grow up to run things go to elite private schools, not public schools.
The sinister plan to "dumb down Americans" started to take shape as we see it today back in the days of Carnegie and Rockefeller and is well documented.
Two brave people that have written extensively about this subject are Charlotte Iserbyt and John Taylor Gatto. Both have books and material on You Tube.
Gatto was a public school teacher for 30 years and Iserbyt a top education advisor in the Reagan administration.
I have great interest in this subject and it will be one of the topics I'll be discussing here on Steemit.
Your children are super lucky papa-pepper to have a dad that sees through the deception, something unfortunately many do not.
Thanks for this wise and informative post :o)
Ya know @papa-pepper, the title question got me to thinking. If we are to ask a bunch of 6th grade students "what do you want to be when you growup?"
In the US - that answer has become "I want to be famous" and then I say, Ok how? "I want to be on youtube"
ME: SMH :-(
What happened to doctor, astronaut, etc. Blockchain prodigy I'd take now too!
Fame simply for the sake of fame is too often the goal. How foolish.
i like people who know the importance of sharing quality time with their families, it is very encouraging to know that men who see beyond just providing their families with money really still exist. Beautiful post, thanks for sharing.
Thank you for encouraging me with your comment!
i feel so humbled. thanks boss
What are those strange hats? Are they shells from the base of some large fuzzy acorns?
Yup, strange hats from the homesteading conference.
Those things are neat. They're flexible, turn inside-out, make all sorts of goofy shapes, and are relatively indestructible. I wonder how much they cost?
if i had children i know what i would want them not to be - i would not to be dishonest, i would want to be not fearful, i would want them to be not afraid, i would want to be not uninquisitive or incurious or unquestioning and most definitely would not want them to anti-thinking
Wow! Very well said! Thanks @tommyquest!
Amen!!! @papa-pepper.
Thanks @rainwalle!