Monday, 11 April 2011
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I Found the American Dream
I spent the first 13 years of my life learning about the American dream. I have spent the last 34 years of my life chasing that American dream. Scratching. Clawing. Two steps forward, ten steps backwards.I am now 47 years old and finally I have made it.
I got out of the whole, I'm no longer lower class nothing; I'm now a middle class somebody. I have money, I have possessions, I have friends, I have respect, I have a position of authority. I finally have everything I had been chasing.
Now that I'm here, I have only one thing to say.
Every thing I wanted, every thing I have been chasing, all these things that drove me ever forward for so many years -- they are not here. They never were here.
I left it all behind and found an illusion. True Friends, love, happiness -- these things can only be found in one place on earth: at the bottom of the ladder.
The something I chased for so long turned out to be nothing.
I think I will go back.
Have you chased after the American dream? If you found it, was it everything you hoped it would be? Why do we chase after this illusion when we could chase after the peace that comes from knowing God?
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- From: ChaplainPaden
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Comments (11)
"The something I chased for so long turned out to be nothing.
I think I will go back."
ok then... feel free to turn in all that money, respect, and authority on the way out...
True friends and love and joy can be found where you are, no matter where that may be. There is always a light in any dark room. Sometimes, we just have to look for it. My joy is knowing that I am consistently and forever loved by JC..That is where my happiness lies. Never has been position, friends, power, money, etc. It is the love I can never buy or hope to earn. Now, that is pure joy.
As most people know, I'm an ex-American. I left America in early January and officially renounced my US citizenship on January 13, 2011 becoming stateless.
For me, the "American dream" was non-existent because I couldn't chase my dream in America. I had to leave my country of birth in order to do so. I have no love for America, its ideals, or what it stands for. I have no love for the American system of extreme greed and selfishness. I have no love for the general American population who strives to legislate religion. I left it all behind, and I will never go back.
Today, I'm stateless (that is, I'm not a citizen of any country). I pledge no allegiance to any country, not even the one I currently reside in. I'm a citizen of the Kingdom of God, and that is where I pledge my allegiance.
The American Dream was a marketing gimmick to lure people to the US. Once here you are set free to pursue your dream. Some people achieve their dreams while others are lost. Those people will find what they have been longing for. This might take a detour but they will come back home.
They will find their home.
I hope you find your way back home. Much love and joy to you. :)
@NikBv@xanga -
I will.
I would gladly give it to you but there is only one way to get it.
You have to earn it.
To earn it you have to turn your back on every one who you love.
Is it worth that to you, It is not to me.
If you think it is worth that, I feel pity for you.
i've never been a big fan of capitalist enterprises, mainly because i care little for "the bottom line" or anything having to do with profits. i quit a relatively well-paying job to work three crappy part-time jobs simultaneously because i've found that i'm happier with less money and more health, free time, and joy from the work i do. once i'm finished with school and can find a job related to my degree, i fully plan to work for a non-profit where i'm working to make a difference, not increase my CEO's bonuses.
"A Christmas Carol"
@StatelessPilot - "As most people know, I'm..." Well don't we have a high opinion of ourselves.
@JesusDeciple - I've held positions of authority and I felt respected. I'd have called my experience a great success. I don't remember having to sell-out to do that, nor did I lose any friends or burn any bridges. If you had to turn your back on everyone you loved in order to achieve, that says something about you -- not what you're calling (blaming on) "The American Dream."
@Phillip - I didn't Sell out
I'm walking away.
I'm Smart enough to know that
Family and Friends and Integrity are
more important.
Are You.
If You had to choose between Family, Friends, Integrity and
the so called American Dream, Could/Would you walk away
from everything you Earned for them.
@Phillip - None of what I have was given free.
I earned every bit of it with my own sweat.
And I did it without walking on the backs of
others, ignoring safety and ethics, or turning
my back on morality.
When they expected me to use others unfairly and
ignore ethics and morality and safety.
I decided it wasn't worth it.
The real American Dream and what most think is
the American Dream are two different things.
What I finally found when I realized that what I had
was a sham is really the American Dream, And it has
nothing at all to do with Money, Power, Authority, Position,
or any of the other things associated with the so called
American Dream.
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