Thinking About the Future

My mom told me a story this morning about a young woman in her 30’s. She said there was a young beautiful woman who was going in and out of relationships. She was looking for the perfect guy. There were a couple of guys that showed interest in her, but she still dated around. Though she wanted to start a family and get married, especially as she was getting older and more stable in her career. It was still hard for her to meet a man that she felt she could be happy sharing her life with.

Well, eventually she met a guy who really showed interest in her. He really tried to get her attention. He was attractive, kind, and well-kept. She even went on a few dates with him. Then one day she asked her father to come over and help her fix a water leak in her kitchen. When her father fixed the leak, as he was getting ready to leave, he asked her, “Hey, so what’s going on with you and Bob? (let’s call the guy Bob)… I know you want to start a family, so what do you think about him?”

She answered, “He’s alright. But, I don’t think he’s the one for me. He’s a high school teacher, and I’m not willing to be with someone who lives on a teacher’s salary…. I just don’t know.”

Then her father said, “Well, I think he’s a good guy. He sure does treat you nice. I know you like him, and you guys look good together… I want to tell you something baby. You know I love you. The guy you’re looking for doesn’t exist. And, twenty to thirty years down the line from now you’re going to be looking for anyone to help you maintain your house and lay next to, but probably everyone worth having will be married or divorced with families. You need to invest in your future because your beauty will eventually fade, and I’m going to be dead.”

So, how does the story end? Mom didn’t finish it, and we switched conversations. Then my auntie dropped in soon afterwards. When my mom was telling me this story, I just sat there and listened to it. We were talking about relationships, family, friends, marriage, children and other things as I spent the afternoon with her.

Now I’m back at my apartment I don’t know if that story she told me was real, or it was a fictional story that she used to try to tell me to start investing in my future. I don’t know. However I do feel like it was a great picture of how people today have placed a higher priority on living a comfortable lifestyle rather than who they’re going to share it with, when making decisions on relationships. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the story 🙂 . Like who doesn’t enjoy listening to their mom tell a story.