Blog #3

The story of Jane Yoder began with a description of her childhood, whicch hapened to be during the Great Depression. Like countless other families during this time, Jane's family did not have much money at all and they struggled to keep warm. There was another challenge, though; her dad was schizophrenic. Jane describes her family, and it's easy to see that her mom is definitely not materialistic, and she has good values. It's hard to be materialistic when you really don't have any money, and the kids were always hungry, so they sensed that their father did not have much money, but then their father got employed, and everything started to get a bit better. Jane's son, Tom, is very grateful for everything he has, because he know what his mother had gone through. It gives him a good perspective on things. Then. I read Peggy Terry's story, and that was extremely  depressing. Her family would have to go to the homeless shelter to get soup, and they lived in a house that had nothing. What I find fascinating; Peggy Terry remembers the soup line as being a fun experience, and she said that nobody made her feel ashamed to be poor. Nowadays, it's not like that, and people tend to look down on the poor, and stereotypes define you. "Oh, it's his fault he's poor. He's lazy and ignorant, and probably had a drug problem." That's how people sound now, of course not everybody, but a good lot of people. I think that is because people have lost moral values and have become much more selfish. People have higher standards and less empathy for others. Anyways, Peggy tells the story of how she got married and travelled with her husband, and how that was a great experience for poor people because on the run, trouble doesn't really catch up with you. She said that peole were very nice to them, especially when she was pregnant, and they fed her great meals. It makes me a little sad to think that Americans have lost a little bit of the sensitivity and empathy, even though it does make sense because of risks of criminals out there. Still, the folks that are privelaged should have good hospitality for those who are poor, because what goes around comes around, and it always feels good to know you have a positive impact on somebody's life.