Dependence

My mother always used to tell me that God helps the child who helps himself as I was a young tyke. She encouraged me to become independent and educated to avoid dependence that could hinder my life in the future. Over the weekend, I finally saw some sort of benefits for my independence as usually many are put of by it or intimidated by it. In America we have a large welfare supported population..... you will find that many that are close to you are receiving some sort of benefit from the government... either food stamps, childcare supplements, healthcare, housing or social security. I am all in favor for these programs as to be used in the situation of transitions : I.e. you find yourself on hard times, death, unemployment... but you must work towards becoming independent of the systems at some point.. not just living a lifestyle in which you depend on it. The past weekend, the E.B.T. system was down in Ohio and all the people that use food stamps to get food were unable to shop. However, my family and I do not utilize the system. We have been informed that we are over income to receive any sort of aid from the government, although we pay the taxes that support those that do use the system. This weekend I was very fortunate to be independent of the government... As I made several stops over the weekend to the carry out and the grocery... each time they reminded me that the E.B.T system was down.. and I reminded them that I had real currency to exchange for goods... Now I know the users of the system may be offended by this post, but the truth of the matter is this. Everything will eventually come to an end... you must always be prepared for the unexpected... especially if you are in a position that you depend greatly on someone or something for your lively hood. It is always good to have some money set aside or a back up plan for when or if such things occur.. Who could have ever foreseen a government shutdown? This weekend was a prime example of what my mother had always promoted me to be... and how distinguishing yourself from the crowd always pays off....