What is Poverty

I've been thinking about what poverty is, what it looks like, how it affects me and how it affects our culture. Technically, we personally have been living in poverty for about four years but I never think of myself as poor. We can't go out and buy a lot of things I think we need, let alone want, but I have found that being poor is not the same thing as poverty. Poverty is a feeling, it is a mentality. Sometimes it's sad that I can't get things, sometimes it is frustrating, but I am so thankful for what we do have. We own vehicles but have no payments, we have two homes, one rented out, one we rent; we have beautiful antique furniture that I love; we have books and books and books, which make me feel rich; we have electricity so that I can find anything and just about anyone on the internet, and I am as close as a click to our kids;

So what is poverty? I don't think it has anything to do with how much money we have, or what things we have. I spent time in Guatemala and they are very poor in material things but they laugh and play and make a life worth living.  I'm beginning to think poverty is thinking we have to buy things for ourselves and our kids that will provide an appearance of wealth. Real poverty is thinking we have less value because we don't live in fancy houses and drive expensive cars or  dress in brand names.  You can have a lot of money and think this, and you can have no money and think this.

By the way, we drove a Cadillac Escalade for a number of years and I loved it, and we will drive one again when we can pay cash for it, and we are planning to rebuild our family house to be big and beautiful. I won't defend what we do with our resources because that would be motivated by that feeling of less worth for not having them, and that is poverty to me.

I guess, like most things,  it comes down to motive. I have determined that I will not base my value, my confidence, my relationships, on what I own, or how much money I spend. I will dream dreams and plan for days when we have more, I will spend carefully what we now have; I will be thankful in all things; I will be content; I will not judge others for how they live their lives; I will not  be poverty minded.

A little more info

I guess I should add that our own lives mirror an interesting trend in America. We have moved back to the original house that Bob's great grandparents lived in. They moved to Corvallis in 1910/1911 and grew livestock for the meat market they had downtown. We have fruit trees, grapes, and many flowers that have survived from Grandmother Mary's planting. The house and farm need lots of tender loving care and we are just the people to do it. Here is an interesting article from the New York Times about this trend, and it even takes place in my hometown.  http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/us/06farmers.html?_r=2

Opening Thoughts

I've been thinking about where we are going culturally with a significant influence being economic, and it seems like we are returning to the values that my grandparent lived by. They didn't have a lot of disposable income and no credit cards so they basically used resources that were on hand, or what was in the cupboard.  So I have started a blog for the purpose of passing around ideas for creating things from what is on hand, answering questions like: 'how to cook for company with a tin of tuna and a box of macaroni'; or making a birthday present with basic materials or 'remaking' a gift from that item you weren't so fond of; or decorating with no money...all things I have had to do staying at home to raise five kids.  Creativity that came from necessity became requests from family and friends for the work of my hands, and a life-long pleasure in 'making do with what you have'.