I cannot remember if I have written about the American Dream. I'm sure I have, or, at least, I have discussed it with some of you. No matter. I am going to write about it again. And it's going to be long.
A more apt title for this would have been "The Death of the American Dream" but that seems a little pessimistic. The sister post for this one is "The Cost of Education" and what I write here should be read with that post in mind.
First, a little background on the term "The American Dream". According to Wikipedia: "In the definition of the American Dream by James Truslow Adams in 1931, 'life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement' regardless of social class or circumstances of birth.'" The full quote from Adams' Epic of America reads
But there has been also the American dream, that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for every man, with opportunity for each according to his ability or achievement. It is a difficult dream for the European upper classes to interpret adequately, and too many of us ourselves have grown weary and mistrustful of it. It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position.
I find this definition has been lost over time. Since the end of World War II, the American Dream has been owning a house, having a good-paying job, marriage, and kids--with some variation. But it is the idea of the "self-made man", with limited definitions of what "making it" and "success" mean.
The meritocracy of Adams' definition has been infected with money--leading to a far more class-based society than I believe he imagined. Social mobility, and the belief that it is attainable have decreased. In the article"the American Myth of Social Mobility", the author states
Many cite education as the key to socioeconomic mobility, and there the inequalities in the American educational system clearly play a role. For example, the United States Department of Education has shown that the highest performing eighth graders from low socioeconomic backgrounds have about the same chance of completing a bachelors degree as the lowest performing eighth graders from high socioeconomic backgrounds. Translation: When it comes to higher education, the amount to money your parents have is much more critical than academic potential, and higher education is a key to socioeconomic mobility.
And this is the part that relates to "The Cost of Education" post: Education is expensive and without it, it is impossible to "make it", whatever that means.
One of the defining features of American society has generally been the size of the middle class. But recently, it has shrunk, or at least been perceived to have shrunk. As you can read about here. The age group most affected by this: 18-29 year olds. This is due in large part because real wages have stagnated. Meaning, pay increases have not kept pace with inflation--not even taking the price of goods into account. In this article, Drew Desilver says
But after adjusting for inflation, today's average hourly wage has just about the same purchasing power as it did in 1979...in real terms, the median has barely budged over that period [1979-2014]. What gains have been made, have gone to the upper income brackets Since 2000, usual weekly wages have fallen 3.7% (in real terms) among workers in the lowest tenth of the earnings distribution, and 3% among the lowest quarter. But among people near the top of the distribution, real wages have risen 9.7%.
It is getting more difficult in this country to live if you are not wealthy. And if you are not wealthy and go to college to get a job that will allow you to climb the social ladder, you will pay and be saddled with loans, and have difficulties finding a job. Which leads to underemployment.
This article may be from 2014, but the point it makes remains the same. In August 2014, the "real" unemployment rate was 12.6%. That means, when the article was written, there were almost the same number of people marginally employed as were unemployed during the height of the Great Depression. Added to this, most of these workers are earning something near minimum wage.
I searched "current living wage in us" in Google and was presented with this statement:
A single-mother with two children earning the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour needs to work 125 hours per week, more hours than there are in a 5-day week, to earn a living wage. The living wage varies based on the cost of living and taxes where families live.
The first link under that search leads to this article, which says
The minimum wage does not provide a living wage for most American families. A typical family of four (two working adults, two children) needs to work more than 3 full-time minimum-wage jobs (a 68-hour work week per working adult) to earn a living wage. Across all family sizes, the living wage exceeds the poverty threshold, often used to identify need.
There are efforts to increase the minimum wage, but it is hard not to think that is merely a band-aid on a bullet wound.
As a historian, I know the struggles workers have experienced to get fair pay. I know the living conditions. I know the hope. "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free" No longer are those masses just immigrants from foreign lands, they are our neighbors, our friends, our families, ourselves. We need massive change to reclaim the American Dream.
Friday, April 10, 2015
The Cost of Education
We all know school is expensive. No matter how you slice it, in America, higher education is getting more expensive. Even though President Obama recently introduced a plan to make the first two years of community college free to students, the problem will continue.
[Disclaimer: I was able to get through my undergraduate degree without student loans, but only because my parents are exceptionally generous and planned to help me go to school. Also, my grandparents left me some money when they died, which I put towards school.]
This isn't meant to be a self-indulgent rant. I acknowledge my choices in going to a private school for my BA and abroad for my MA, which is now presenting some pricey hoops to jump through to continue my education/career. And I'm not trying to garner sympathy. I am saying, as many have, this is a serious problem.
For how much we as a culture say we value education, it doesn't show. My generation, and the generations before and after me, have been told we could be anything and do anything we want when we grow up. That hard work and perseverance will get us the jobs of our dreams. That a college education is the ticket to success. The G.I. Bill, passed in 1944, provided for World War II veterans to go to university or obtain vocational education. Since then, college--from community to Ive League--has been the step after high school for a lot of people. I'm not disputing the importance placed on further education. (Although, not every career needs the same kind of preparation and classroom learning is not the best environment for everyone.)
My point is, if we value education so much, why does it cost so much? I'm sure at this point you want to point out that private education always is more expensive and it is a choice. I acknowledge that, but I have a larger point, because state universities are also increasing tuition costs.
As most people go to school, institutions must get bigger, from more buildings to more faculty and staff. And buildings and salaries are not cheap.
One of my favorite TV shows, The West Wing, has a plot line devoted to the cost of college. It starts with this clip, during one of my favorite episodes. Over the course of the next few episodes, spoiler alert, they make part of college tuition a tax deduction. This wouldn't solve problems in the real world. And I'm almost positive the current government would not even consider something like this. But we need a new system. This one is unfair. And costs more than just money. And is seriously broken.
As with all broken things that involve money, there are outside interests that are deeply invested in keeping the status quo. Rich people are greedy. Society could change, and it would be slow, but it would be different. Keeping the student loan system, and how it works and even entire educational system and beliefs thereof is impossible.
Some people might tell me to calm down and wait until my generation is in charge. But I'm telling you no. I'm angry and it is a righteous anger. If I wait for government to change, I will be waiting close to forever. The average age of Congress is 57, and with a 96% incumbency rate, I don't even want to know how long it will take before change can happen. The Occupy Wall Street movement may have had its problems, but it also had a point. We are told to study what we love, but when we do, we are penalized.
The pursuit of knowledge should be exalted. As a society we cannot continue to punish people who want to learn, even if what they study is not "useful". We cannot demand college degrees or graduate degrees for careers that do not need them. We cannot attach an anchor to our future in the form of ever-increasing student debt.
[Disclaimer: I was able to get through my undergraduate degree without student loans, but only because my parents are exceptionally generous and planned to help me go to school. Also, my grandparents left me some money when they died, which I put towards school.]
This isn't meant to be a self-indulgent rant. I acknowledge my choices in going to a private school for my BA and abroad for my MA, which is now presenting some pricey hoops to jump through to continue my education/career. And I'm not trying to garner sympathy. I am saying, as many have, this is a serious problem.
For how much we as a culture say we value education, it doesn't show. My generation, and the generations before and after me, have been told we could be anything and do anything we want when we grow up. That hard work and perseverance will get us the jobs of our dreams. That a college education is the ticket to success. The G.I. Bill, passed in 1944, provided for World War II veterans to go to university or obtain vocational education. Since then, college--from community to Ive League--has been the step after high school for a lot of people. I'm not disputing the importance placed on further education. (Although, not every career needs the same kind of preparation and classroom learning is not the best environment for everyone.)
My point is, if we value education so much, why does it cost so much? I'm sure at this point you want to point out that private education always is more expensive and it is a choice. I acknowledge that, but I have a larger point, because state universities are also increasing tuition costs.
As most people go to school, institutions must get bigger, from more buildings to more faculty and staff. And buildings and salaries are not cheap.
One of my favorite TV shows, The West Wing, has a plot line devoted to the cost of college. It starts with this clip, during one of my favorite episodes. Over the course of the next few episodes, spoiler alert, they make part of college tuition a tax deduction. This wouldn't solve problems in the real world. And I'm almost positive the current government would not even consider something like this. But we need a new system. This one is unfair. And costs more than just money. And is seriously broken.
As with all broken things that involve money, there are outside interests that are deeply invested in keeping the status quo. Rich people are greedy. Society could change, and it would be slow, but it would be different. Keeping the student loan system, and how it works and even entire educational system and beliefs thereof is impossible.
Some people might tell me to calm down and wait until my generation is in charge. But I'm telling you no. I'm angry and it is a righteous anger. If I wait for government to change, I will be waiting close to forever. The average age of Congress is 57, and with a 96% incumbency rate, I don't even want to know how long it will take before change can happen. The Occupy Wall Street movement may have had its problems, but it also had a point. We are told to study what we love, but when we do, we are penalized.
The pursuit of knowledge should be exalted. As a society we cannot continue to punish people who want to learn, even if what they study is not "useful". We cannot demand college degrees or graduate degrees for careers that do not need them. We cannot attach an anchor to our future in the form of ever-increasing student debt.
Monday, April 6, 2015
Non-Classical Poetry, Part 4
Part 4 is a rather drastic departure from Parts 1-3, and the original post, as far as I can tell, can be found here.
I love this one because it helps me remember that I should not diminish myself when I am too much for someone else. I am lucky to have always been told this--at least by my parents. And recently, by many other people. But many women are not. You can see this in the plethora of products and advertisements and advice that tell women to be different, to change themselves to fit men's idea of woman.
I have also been told that I have no control over other people's emotions. Now, that is not entirely true, my words and actions have consequences. But, overall, I do not control what people feel. And the same holds true for all people, especially women. Women are pressured to become less themselves to conform to society's ideals. But that is not fair. Should not we be who we are and demand society change?
There is a TEDx talk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie at TEDxEuston that I especially love. She raises many of the same points. The talk is available on YouTube and you should all watch it. She says,
And then we do a much greater disservice to girls because we raise them to cater to fragile egos of men. We teach girls to shrink themselves, to make themselves smaller...But what if we question the premise itself? Why should a woman's success be a threat to a man...A Nigerian acquaintance once asked me if I was worried that men would be intimidated by me. I was not worried at all. In fact it had not occurred to me to be worried because a man who will be intimidated by me is exactly the kind of man I would have no interest in.
These ideas are important. We should not change to fit the world. We should change the world to fit us.
Dear Woman,
Sometimes
You'll just be too much woman.
Too smart,
Too beautiful,
Too strong.
Too much of something
That makes a man feel like less of a man,
Which will start making you feel like you have to be less of a woman.
The biggest mistake you can make
Is removing jewels from your crown
To make it easier for a man to carry.
When this happens, I need you to understand,
You do not need a smaller crown--
You need a man with bigger hands.
I love this one because it helps me remember that I should not diminish myself when I am too much for someone else. I am lucky to have always been told this--at least by my parents. And recently, by many other people. But many women are not. You can see this in the plethora of products and advertisements and advice that tell women to be different, to change themselves to fit men's idea of woman.
I have also been told that I have no control over other people's emotions. Now, that is not entirely true, my words and actions have consequences. But, overall, I do not control what people feel. And the same holds true for all people, especially women. Women are pressured to become less themselves to conform to society's ideals. But that is not fair. Should not we be who we are and demand society change?
There is a TEDx talk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie at TEDxEuston that I especially love. She raises many of the same points. The talk is available on YouTube and you should all watch it. She says,
And then we do a much greater disservice to girls because we raise them to cater to fragile egos of men. We teach girls to shrink themselves, to make themselves smaller...But what if we question the premise itself? Why should a woman's success be a threat to a man...A Nigerian acquaintance once asked me if I was worried that men would be intimidated by me. I was not worried at all. In fact it had not occurred to me to be worried because a man who will be intimidated by me is exactly the kind of man I would have no interest in.
These ideas are important. We should not change to fit the world. We should change the world to fit us.
Sunday, April 5, 2015
Non-Classical Poetry, Part 3
Part 3 is similar to Part 2 and the original, as far as I can tell, can be found here.
"Your generation would probably 'livetweet' the apocalyspe" you
say, and you laugh
You mean it as an insult, and I understand,
Or you don't
because the word lies awkwardly on your tongue, stumbles as it
leaves your lips, air quotes visible
You meant it as an insult, so you don't understand, when I look into
your eyes and say "Yes"
Because we would.
It would be our duty, as citizens on this earth
to document it's end the best way we know
and if that means a second by second update
of the world going up in flames, or down in rain, or crushed under
the feet of invading monsters
so be it.
It would mean a second by second update of
"I love you"
"I'm scared"
"Are you all right?"
"Stay close"
"Be brave"
It would mean a second by second update of the humanity's
connection with one another,
Proof of empathy, love, and friendship between people who may
have never met in the flesh.
So don't throw the world "Livetweet" at me like a dagger, meant to
tear at my "teenage superiority"
Because if the citizens of Pompeii, before they were consumed by fire,
had a chance to tell their friends and family throughout Rome
"I love you"
"I'm scared"
"Don't forget me"
Don't you think they'd have taken the chance?
Like the previous poem, this one works because it is now. The idea of 'live tweeting' is so new it is hard to comprehend. Until recently, I hadn't live tweeted anything. But then I did. And I felt the appeal. It was a way to share a situation with many people who could not actually be there. And, as opposed to other situations, I wanted to share it with more than one person. I could have set up a mass text, or a group conversation on Facebook Messenger. But that would not have had the same appeal.
When many people decide to live tweet an event, they create a community, for however long that event lasts. They can share their experience of it. There are also phone apps that do the same thing, but most are anonymous, and that is interesting too, just not right now. As I mentioned in Part 2, we are experiencing an increase in the ease of communication, and this is simply another example of that.
A theme across 1, 2, and 3 has been the draw on the past and past peoples and the yearning to know we are not alone. In 1, it was the idea that across time, all people have felt the same sorrow or joy as we feel now. In 2, it was how artists would have used social media to tell their stories. Here it is how the people of Pompeii experienced the end of the world, and how, if we experienced something similar, would experience it. Instead of becoming isolated in this new age of technology (as has been posited elsewhere), I find people have become more connected. And yes, we do need to spend more time with people in person. And yes, the parts of the world that do not have internet access are still too isolated. But that is not reason to despair. It is reason to hope. There isn't a lack of interest or concern or care. It is simply expensive and complicated, and in some places a logistical nightmare. So there is work to be done.
Across time, we shout into the abyss "I love you" "I'm scared" "Don't forget me". And, somewhere, sometime, a voice answers.
"Your generation would probably 'livetweet' the apocalyspe" you
say, and you laugh
You mean it as an insult, and I understand,
Or you don't
because the word lies awkwardly on your tongue, stumbles as it
leaves your lips, air quotes visible
You meant it as an insult, so you don't understand, when I look into
your eyes and say "Yes"
Because we would.
It would be our duty, as citizens on this earth
to document it's end the best way we know
and if that means a second by second update
of the world going up in flames, or down in rain, or crushed under
the feet of invading monsters
so be it.
It would mean a second by second update of
"I love you"
"I'm scared"
"Are you all right?"
"Stay close"
"Be brave"
It would mean a second by second update of the humanity's
connection with one another,
Proof of empathy, love, and friendship between people who may
have never met in the flesh.
So don't throw the world "Livetweet" at me like a dagger, meant to
tear at my "teenage superiority"
Because if the citizens of Pompeii, before they were consumed by fire,
had a chance to tell their friends and family throughout Rome
"I love you"
"I'm scared"
"Don't forget me"
Don't you think they'd have taken the chance?
Like the previous poem, this one works because it is now. The idea of 'live tweeting' is so new it is hard to comprehend. Until recently, I hadn't live tweeted anything. But then I did. And I felt the appeal. It was a way to share a situation with many people who could not actually be there. And, as opposed to other situations, I wanted to share it with more than one person. I could have set up a mass text, or a group conversation on Facebook Messenger. But that would not have had the same appeal.
When many people decide to live tweet an event, they create a community, for however long that event lasts. They can share their experience of it. There are also phone apps that do the same thing, but most are anonymous, and that is interesting too, just not right now. As I mentioned in Part 2, we are experiencing an increase in the ease of communication, and this is simply another example of that.
A theme across 1, 2, and 3 has been the draw on the past and past peoples and the yearning to know we are not alone. In 1, it was the idea that across time, all people have felt the same sorrow or joy as we feel now. In 2, it was how artists would have used social media to tell their stories. Here it is how the people of Pompeii experienced the end of the world, and how, if we experienced something similar, would experience it. Instead of becoming isolated in this new age of technology (as has been posited elsewhere), I find people have become more connected. And yes, we do need to spend more time with people in person. And yes, the parts of the world that do not have internet access are still too isolated. But that is not reason to despair. It is reason to hope. There isn't a lack of interest or concern or care. It is simply expensive and complicated, and in some places a logistical nightmare. So there is work to be done.
Across time, we shout into the abyss "I love you" "I'm scared" "Don't forget me". And, somewhere, sometime, a voice answers.
Saturday, April 4, 2015
Non-Classical Poetry, Part 2
Part 2 of my poetry post is on "Art is a Facebook status about your winter break" by b.e.fitzgerald as found here on Tumblr.
Once again, the full text:
I swear to every heaven ever imagined,
if I hear one more dead-eyed hipster
tell me that art is dead, I will personally summon Shakespeare
from the grave so he can tell them every reason
why he wishes he were born in a time where
he could have a damn Gmail account.
The day after I taught my mother how to send pictures over Iphone she texted
me a blurry image of our cocker spaniel ten times in a row.
Don't you dare try to tell me that that is not beautiful.
But whatever, go ahead and choose to stay in
your backwards-hoping-all-inclusive club
while the rest of us fall in love over Skype.
Send angry letters to state representatives,
as we record the years first sunrise so
we can remember what beginning feels like when
we are inches away from the trigger.
Lock yourself away in your Antoinette castle
while we eat cake and tweet to the whole universe that we did.
Hashtag you're a pretentious ass hole.
Van Gogh would have taken 20 selfies a day.
Sylvia Plath would have texted her lovers
nothing but heart eyed emojis when she ran out of words.
Andy Warhol would have had the worlds weirdest Vine account,
and we all would have checked it every morning while we
Snap Chat out coffee orders to the people
we wish were pressed against out lips instead of lattes.
This life is spilling over with 85 year olds
rewatching JFK's assassination and
7 year olds teaching themselves guitar over Youtube videos.
never again do I have to be afraid of forgetting
what my fathers voice sounds like.
No longer must we sneak into our families phonebook
to look up an eating disorder hotline for out best friend.
No more must I wonder what people in Australia sound like
or how grasshoppers procreate.
I will gleefully continue to take pictures of tulips
in public parks on my cellphone
and you will continue to scoff and that is okay.
But I hope, I pray, that one day you will realize how blessed
you are to say I love you in 164 different languages.
I love this one because its is so now. The entire premise is social media and communication through non-traditional means--Vine, Snapchat, YouTube. The narrator is railing against a culture that says this new communication is less valid than previous methods. Or maybe not. Hipsters connect through all these mediums. But seem to value the past ones more. But, to me, rejection of social media isn't necessarily limited to hipster-dom; it is also people who say selfies are stupid and narcissistic. Reality check, for hundreds of years, the wealthy commissioned paintings of themselves. If that isn't selfie culture, I don't know what it.
As a historian, I love the way the author includes Shakespeare, Sylvia Plath, and Andy Warhol. It is interesting to think what artists of the past would have thought of the ease with which we can communicate. In many ways, the rise of technology and such has lead to the democratization of art. Sure, Instagram and Facebook are filled to the gills with sunrises, sunsets, and cats, but isn't that wonderful? Why is people finding beauty in life bad? We all (at least in the wealthy countries) have been given the ability to be artists--an opportunity denied our ancestors.
"Hashtag you're a pretentious ass hole" is quite possibly my favorite single line. It's a phrase that many of us are tempted to say to people in reality. Hashtags are confusing, but they are generally used to collect information and make it easier to search sites like Twitter and Tumblr. Additionally, hashtags are starting to be used in conversations, out loud. Or maybe it's just me, but it is a little fun.
Ultimately, to me, this poem is about the increasing ease of communication. And how can that be a bad thing?
Once again, the full text:
I swear to every heaven ever imagined,
if I hear one more dead-eyed hipster
tell me that art is dead, I will personally summon Shakespeare
from the grave so he can tell them every reason
why he wishes he were born in a time where
he could have a damn Gmail account.
The day after I taught my mother how to send pictures over Iphone she texted
me a blurry image of our cocker spaniel ten times in a row.
Don't you dare try to tell me that that is not beautiful.
But whatever, go ahead and choose to stay in
your backwards-hoping-all-inclusive club
while the rest of us fall in love over Skype.
Send angry letters to state representatives,
as we record the years first sunrise so
we can remember what beginning feels like when
we are inches away from the trigger.
Lock yourself away in your Antoinette castle
while we eat cake and tweet to the whole universe that we did.
Hashtag you're a pretentious ass hole.
Van Gogh would have taken 20 selfies a day.
Sylvia Plath would have texted her lovers
nothing but heart eyed emojis when she ran out of words.
Andy Warhol would have had the worlds weirdest Vine account,
and we all would have checked it every morning while we
Snap Chat out coffee orders to the people
we wish were pressed against out lips instead of lattes.
This life is spilling over with 85 year olds
rewatching JFK's assassination and
7 year olds teaching themselves guitar over Youtube videos.
never again do I have to be afraid of forgetting
what my fathers voice sounds like.
No longer must we sneak into our families phonebook
to look up an eating disorder hotline for out best friend.
No more must I wonder what people in Australia sound like
or how grasshoppers procreate.
I will gleefully continue to take pictures of tulips
in public parks on my cellphone
and you will continue to scoff and that is okay.
But I hope, I pray, that one day you will realize how blessed
you are to say I love you in 164 different languages.
I love this one because its is so now. The entire premise is social media and communication through non-traditional means--Vine, Snapchat, YouTube. The narrator is railing against a culture that says this new communication is less valid than previous methods. Or maybe not. Hipsters connect through all these mediums. But seem to value the past ones more. But, to me, rejection of social media isn't necessarily limited to hipster-dom; it is also people who say selfies are stupid and narcissistic. Reality check, for hundreds of years, the wealthy commissioned paintings of themselves. If that isn't selfie culture, I don't know what it.
As a historian, I love the way the author includes Shakespeare, Sylvia Plath, and Andy Warhol. It is interesting to think what artists of the past would have thought of the ease with which we can communicate. In many ways, the rise of technology and such has lead to the democratization of art. Sure, Instagram and Facebook are filled to the gills with sunrises, sunsets, and cats, but isn't that wonderful? Why is people finding beauty in life bad? We all (at least in the wealthy countries) have been given the ability to be artists--an opportunity denied our ancestors.
"Hashtag you're a pretentious ass hole" is quite possibly my favorite single line. It's a phrase that many of us are tempted to say to people in reality. Hashtags are confusing, but they are generally used to collect information and make it easier to search sites like Twitter and Tumblr. Additionally, hashtags are starting to be used in conversations, out loud. Or maybe it's just me, but it is a little fun.
Ultimately, to me, this poem is about the increasing ease of communication. And how can that be a bad thing?
Friday, April 3, 2015
Non-Classical Poetry, Part 1
In the last year or so, I have found three poems on Tumblr that I really like. I thought I'd share them with you all. I have decided to separate them into four posts so you don't get inundated with text.
The first I found sometime in England, I don't remember when exactly, but it's one of my favorites. The original source is here. For my own purposes, here it is in full:
scientists tell us that all water
is old water,
that there is no room for originality,
that everything is recycled.
the anguish of Achilles bleeding out
face-down in the Trojan dirt
mingles with that of a stockbroker caught
in the ebb and flow of the markets,
and what I am trying to say is that the tears
navigating south through the canyons on your face
may have once wet the cheeks
of Alexander the Great
for the same reason.
To me, this is a strong statement of emotion, connecting all people across time and space. Since water is a constant and goes through the same cycles again and again, and we, or at least I, have been told water that starts where I am, in a month could be across the globe. It is not crazy, then, to think water has been recycled from the beginning of time, or earlier, given the arbitrary nature of time.
It is the same concept of all of us being made from the matter of the stars, we are made of stardust. I am made from the same particles that have been around from the beginning, whenever--however--that was. As easy as it would be to feel despair at the enormity of the universe and each individual's insignificance in the face of enormity, instead I feel awed.
Which is the same feeling I get from this work. When I am troubled, or sad, or furious, the tears that grace my face could be the same particles that wound down the face of any person who came before me and was troubled, or sad, or furious. When I am alone, or feel alone, I am not truly alone. Nothing is new. No thought. No feeling. I may feel alone, but I am not the first person to feel that way. And that gives me hope.
After all, as Charlotte Bronte said, "crying does not indicate that your are weak. Since birth, it has always been a sign that you are alive."
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