The first time I heard the word “adultery,” I assumed it meant the sin of growing up. I’m not sure I was entirely wrong. I thought when you got to adulthood, you got your freedom. You didn’t have to take orders from parents, teachers, and every grownup in the world.
It turns out that bosses were less fun than teachers, and everything was ultimately about money. Working for it. Saving it. Using it well. Building a career that would support the life you wanted. Having enough so your family could have a house and nice things.
Photo: Garry Armstrong
I rebelled against it, the whole concept … and went off to do my own thing, dragging my son with me. I took a sharp right turn into unexplored territory. And it did indeed give me a great deal of satisfaction, not to mention many experiences that were beyond price. But I still had to work and money was still the bottom line.
Money is the issue unless you have so much you never have to worry about it — an experience I’ve never had. Money doesn’t buy happiness, but having enough will buy physical comfort, peace of mind, and a good chunk of freedom to do as one pleases.
Night in Boston
When I was little, I remember hearing my parents talking in soft voices at night behind their closed door. I wondered what exciting things they were discussing. Would I ever have such adult conversations in my life?
Indeed, I had many of those conversations. Because they were talking about money.
How to earn it, how to spend it. What they needed. What they might be able to afford for themselves, for us. That’s the basic issue of adulthood in this world. Maybe it has always been this way.
The freedom I was looking for definitely is part of reaching grownup-ness … but so are a heap of responsibilities I never considered. Having to work when it isn’t fun and not what you want to do plus the worry and insecurity. Also, the lack of awards for doing a great job. And the daily fear of getting fired. And finally, getting fired.
Next time around the wheel, I’ll try to do better. I give myself a solid B minus on this round. Which might be an overly generous assessment.
I love the take on ‘adultery’ too; it is a sin to take all the pleasures and carefree times that childhood should be and turn them into kowtowing to bosses, doing anything for money, and paying bills. Ahhh to go back to being about 7 would be great.
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I know. It’s just as well we didn’t REALLY know what adulting meant. It would have ruined even childhood.
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Ha! No doubt!
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They say money can’t buy happiness, but damn I’d sure like the opportunity to try and prove them wrong! smirk smirk
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Wouldn’t we all!!
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haha, I couldn’t resist 🙂
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I love it. Adultery=adulting
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Well, if you think about it — it’s adults who do the dirty work, on all levels. So yeah. Adulting.
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I still think it’s a sin to grow up!
Leslie
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I refuse. I want to be a kid — without any adult responsibilities. You know. Like real adult kids living at home?
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me too!
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Love the title. It certainly caught my eye. 🙂 Do you remember the little budget books? My Mom had one. Each envelope had a different name written on it, and she’d put a few dollars in each one in order to make the bills. We were poor on any scale used. I’d prefer not to repeat that experience, but, hey, we can’t always control the outflow and we know in retirement most of us don’t have any influence on the income either. Money may not buy happiness but it sure allows life to be less stressful. 🙂
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My mother was a bookkeeper, so she had books and worried ALL the time. I think she went to her grave still worried. I would just like to be able to make it through a stress-free month. ONCE. Without regrets.
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Money makes the world go round.-
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I don’t mind money being part of what makes the world go round … but it should NOT be the whole thing. There should be other important things that matter in this world.
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That’s one of the things about youth… the recognition of hardships being done to you by the ‘adults’ with the imagined belief that when you get to be the adult that won’t happen to you anymore, you’ll be ‘free’ to do as you please, when you please.
The we spend 40 years thinking it will be great when i can retire and not have to do what the man tells me to anymore… and i’ll be free…
As if! 😉
‘Greener pastures’ somewhere over there —–>
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We all think that somehow, someday, it will get easier. Retirement IS easier or at least a lot less work. But unless you also have enough money to do your “thing” — whatever that is — it’s still trying to make those pennies work and it just keeps getting harder.
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Sorry, too fast to press enter…..
I won’t be able to use that definition because as a young girl I didn’t speak ENglish and I certainly didn’t aim that high with my own personal vocabulary – I don’t think I knew about Adultery before I was married…. 😉 (this is not directed at my first husband!)
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It’s okay. I was a kid when I heard the world and to me, adult meant “grown-up” so adultery had to mean the sin of growing up. Which didn’t make sense? It kind of does make sense now, in a very weird way!
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Okay, I’m grown up if you count the years. But I know I’m not an adult. Hopefully, a work in progress.
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I love your ‘take’ of the word Adultery…. your midnight-black sense of great humour but I also feel the equally dark ‘other sides’ ….. and sadly, you’re so, so right. As usual. I only regret that I won’t be able to use your wonderful definition of a growing up girl understanding Adultery as The Sin of Growing Up!
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Okay, when I read the title of your post I was expecting something racy, something salacious, something ripped from the headlines about a married man — probably in politics — who was caught having a torrid affair with a younger woman — also married — on his staff or something. Fooled me! It was just about being an adult. (But I read and enjoyed it anyway!)
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Growing up really ruins childhood, don’t you think? We’ve got more than enough salacious. I don’t need to add more. The news is doing JUST FINE.
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The sin of growing up…. perfect 😀
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If it isn’t a sin it ought to be!
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I agree 😀
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“e first time I heard the word “adultery,” I assumed it meant the sin of growing up” Ha!!!
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I really did 🙂
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