Just When You Think.....

Just when you think things are going right in your life, the old one, two punch comes up and hits you right between the eyes.
How many times can a person pick themselves up and move on?  The times we live in right now seem like a bad horror movie and each day brings a new way of punishing those who are trying to make their way to the top of the snake pit we all seem to be living in.
Almost two years ago my daughter's world began collapsing around her.  Strong and determined, she held on for all her might.  She knew her "good" job was going away and began to prepare as much as she could but as the time neared for it to end, she knew she was facing a tremendous wall, an almost unsurmountable wall but she was not going to give up.
As the job ended and a new job search began, she was seeing a picture that was not as hopeful as she had hoped and she clung on as long as possible until she had to sell off her personal belongings and then without any recourse, she had to file bankruptcy and lose the house that she had worked so hard to obtain and meant so much to her. 
So there she was, without her belongings and no home.  What was she to do?  As parents, we all know we will do all we can for our children and we offered her a place to stay with us until she could get back on her feet.  We discussed the options and came up with a solution of buying a trailer to set up next to our house and she would be able to live there until she could get a job.
At the same time we were discussing this and she was in the process of losing her home, we also found out that my husband, her father, received word that his cancer had returned with a vengence.  She said she would be here to help us and we were here to help her but it was still a tension filled time when we all walked around in a daze wondering what was going to happen next.
Then came the day, a year ago tomorrow, January 14, 2010, when my husband passed away.  My daughter was here with us and with me and helped me through those days that followed when I was in the darkest hour and yet she was being strong for me and was in as much pain as I was.  We clung to each other during that time.
But when spring came, a part time job opportunity arrived and she took it until she found a full time position.  She was so excited and so was I.  Things were going well and she liked her new job and she was making plans.
The trailer life is not the best of living conditions and that first winter brought more woes than we were prepared for.  Water lines freezing or bursting, finding that she couldn't afford to heat with the propane so had to zone heat with portable heaters.  Over the summer we corrected the water line issue and had hoped this winter might not be a problem as last year and we had been fortunate until a blast of arctic air arrived and kept us below freezing for several days.  Having water in the morning and then finding that it wasn't there that evening was a shock.  But realizing that only part of the lines were frozen she turned off the water entirely and we hope that during the thaw in the next few days that no pipes have burst.
She was planning on how she could save and perhaps next fall find a small house to rent.  She was also thinking of replacing her car with a more fuel efficient one.  She was excited and so was I as things were going good.
But today that one, two punch reared up its ugly head and knocked her down again.  This time Corporate intervention cutting jobs and perhaps hours without any warning.  Just popping in and boom it was over in a matter of minutes.  The long time director who had put in over 30 years and spent long days was gone in an instant, no warning, no announcements, no chance of being moved to another location.  Now employees wonder who is next as Corporate seems to think the electronic age will be the answer and everything can be done on computers.
What will they do when the computers go down and the work can't get done?  What will they do when there is no one to take care of them?  Will they be replaced one day with a computer?  They don't think, they act and then ask why employees have no loyalty.  Why should they?  When management has no loyalty to their employees or cares what happens to them, they become part of the greedy.  They look at the big bucks.  But what happens if those bucks disappear due to the lack of service?  The computer cannot be a customer service representative, nor can a computer fill the need of a human being in assisting someone with a problem.  So what happens?  The consumer goes to where he can find that human connection.
Have we evolved to a point that we are eliminating that human connection?  Is it okay for someone to work hard and be dependable and give their all only to be eliminated because someone who has no feelings and wants to see more $$ signs on the bottom line.
I wonder just how much more my daughter can take.  Right now, she doesn't know and may not know for several days if her position is safe or if her hours will be cut or maybe her position will be eliminated.  That waiting is almost as bad as that one, two punch that ends it in a second.
I wonder just how much any of us can take the abuse and the lifestyle changes that are being forced on us every single day.
I admire my daughter.  She is a strong young woman but I know there is a breaking point somewhere.  We all have it and she has had her share of bad luck, if you want to call it that, or the bad times caused by the upper echelon wanting to see those dollar signs.  When we put money ahead of humans, we are a lost society.
Just when you think you have made it, watch out.  That one, two punch is there ready to strike again.  It is time to put on the punching gloves and fight back and there is only one way to do that.  We have to cut those dollar signs for every one who sees them as their first priority.   We have to break them before we can get up and start all over.