Thursday, January 19, 2012

Diary of an Unwilling Air Force Wife: Spoiled Rich

                                                                     Source: thatswhatthatmeans.tumblr.com via Daniella on Pinterest

Last night, while I was making dinner, I came to a very unfortunate realization:
We were out of everything. Including money.
There was no butter to go in the mashed potatoes, which were made from our very last potatoes. So I used an old (don't ask how old, just don't) carton of cream, because there was also no sour cream or cheese. 
But the potatoes turned out just fine. We ate them under our last two pieces of chicken. 
Technically we're not out of money. That's just a joke, I promise. We're just running low on funds and food at the same time.
All our bills for the month are paid, so we just have to make it through the next two weeks. 
I have enough money to buy the ingredients for a crock pot recipe we both love that makes dinners and lunches for days on end. And I'll probably buy some milk, so that if all else fails I can survive on coffee alone.
This is all a great big joke to us, because if we really needed it we could just dip into our savings a tiny bit and voila! problem solved! But it's actually kind of fun to see how far we can stretch it, how many meals I can scrape together from the random items in my pantry. 
Which brings me to my soap box speech for the day.
Phillip and I, based on our taxable income, live below the poverty line. We're poor, ya'll. This is what every young angry American is complaining about at the Occupy Wall St. protests. This is the great injustice that liberals are desperate to fix. This monetary gap between us and the spoiled rich. 
Have you ever been to a third world country? Have you ever met someone who lives with their six smiling children in a hovel the size of your kitchen with no running water? Have you met a happy, joyful person who is considered well -off in their home country but whose teeth are falling out from lack of dental care and who has maybe 5 t-shirts in their closet? 
We, the American people in general, and specifically the poorest of the poor, one income only enlisted military families, are the spoiled rich. 
I am outraged at the entitlement in our country, at the insane desire for more and more of someone else's money, when we should be focusing all our energies on praising God for the amazing blessings in our lives. 
I refuse to be considered one of the 99%, because if I, living "below the poverty line," have a three bedroom heated house, and delicious food on my table, and fancy new clothes in my closet, cannot be grateful for what I have, and thankful in all circumstances, then how does our country stand a chance? I should be trying this hard to save money every month so that I can send more to where it's needed and give more to those who truly have nothing. 
                                                                   Source: Uploaded by user via Melinda on Pinterest

Gratitude, people. Let's show some! 
Sorry. Rant over.

4 comments:

  1. You are inspiring. Don't apologize for your rant!! Rant on!!! :)

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  2. I liked the rant too. I personally am quite insulted that my husband works hard and supports 6 people quite, quite comfortably on a salary that is considered much below the "poverty line" for what 6 people "need." Ha! I am constantly considering getting RID of some of our stuff (especially clothes, every time I face Laundry Mountain - which I get to wash and dry with electricity, by the way!), so I probably should start giving it away! Thanks for reminding us how blessed we are!

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  3. Great Post!! Thanks so much for the wonderful reminder of how blessed we are. It is too easy to forget it!!

    Besides, how can God truly show us how powerful He is when we have too much power ourselves? Many times God brings just what we *need* at the right time, but we don't see it unless our circumstances are dire- or at least I do!

    Good, good post!

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  4. Don't ever apologize for rants like that. It's much easier to write a fluffy blog post, but we need more reminders like this to keep our focus where it needs to be- eyes fixed on Jesus!!! I appreciated your heart felt post and love to read those.

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