How to write this post without offending anyone? Hmm. These are just my thoughts this week as a middle class mom trying to make ends meet. First off, it is not lost on me how lucky we are, so don't think I am whining because my thoughts do not stem from that but from my day to day life doing what we all are doing, trying to stretch an even thinner dollar even farther.
Everything that you need to buy is skyrocketing and it seems no one is going to do anything about it. Here in our state gas is so high that you really have to think before you drive anywhere. Now the last time gas spiked like this guess what spiked next? Food, yes already sky high food prices are bound to climb again. If it costs more to ship food the higher prices will be sure to follow.
When fuel prices adjust do the food prices and all the other goods we need go down? No they don't. So I ask is this the new normal? There is no way wages will keep up with these rising costs. Living on less has become the norm for a lot of us and I do live a life where we have enough to eat and a nice roof over our head and I know some do not. I know personally others who do not have that because of job loss and other reasons.
But I want hope in the future for my kids. I see graduates who cannot get jobs everywhere I look. How does someone graduate top of class and find it hard to get a job? I know keeping at it is important and hopefully jobs will be found, but this is not what it looked like for me when I graduated from college. It is not what it looked like even a few short years ago.
We are facing a point I fear in our country where we may not turn these things around. I will not get political on here as that is not my format but I will say it how it is for me and for my family as we see it and live it every day. No matter who wins this next election, I ask again is this the new normal? After a while I fear we will forget more of how it was and accept a new lower standard of the American Dream.
