Man of Industry

It was only a few months ago when I met this "man of industry".  I knew he'd be large in many things.  He walked out from my sister's house, greeting me with a grin.  This was not any house, mind you.  This was a home.  Sitting on the edge of a cliff surrounded by thousands upon thousands of pines, overlooking some of the most beautiful back country in Idaho, it commanded an awesome view. 

The man's eyes gazed on me.  It was the first time we met.  He had wedded my sister and was now gearing up to make his way to the Emerald City, a.k.a. Seattle.  And deep in the living room, with a baby suckling, was my sister.  She had a look of emptiness on her face.  She stared blankly at me when I walked in.  With this marvelous mansion surrounding her, I wondered how she could be anything but giddy.

The man of industry sat next to her.  His new son continued to drink from her as his father grinned at me.  This man was proud of his accomplishments.  Behind him windows that were four times as tall as he was took in the landscape.  He looked me up and down, as if I was a threat to him.  He smiled.  We spoke.

"How do you like it over there?" He asked, regarding my home in New York.
"I like it." 
He was amazed.  He hated it.  "I used to go there for business.  I hate it."
"I see."

His words were spoken quickly.  He knew what he liked in life.  He also knew what he did not like.  He was large, like the house he was in.  His woman, my sister, at his side, said little.  She was annoyed at my presence most likely.  We have never been close.

"What are you doing?"
"Law school."

He was not impressed.  Many laymen may be impressed when you tell them law school, but not this man.  By now, you are probably wondering what this man of industry does for a living.  He told me that he was buying this amazing house from a man who owned a helicopter company.  The company went under shortly after the crash of '08.  He was now unloading the house, and brother-in-law was going to take over everything. 

"What are your plans for life?" he asked.  This was where he was sizing me up.  He wanted to see what kind of threat I was. 

"I don't know.  Maybe start a business," I said, meekly.  It was right then that I realized that I had no plans or goals.  I was just sailing along.  Just in law school at the time, hoping to "do my best".  Hoping against all odds that I would find that amazing job and find that my worries were for naught.  Maybe the scam blogs will be wrong for me, I thought.  But this man slapped me back into reality when he asked me that question.  How can I expect to be different than the others?  Some of them went to T6 schools and they can't find jobs!  How can I expect to do better?  And look at this man's house!  It's huge!  And his child, his 9th!  Surely he is doing something right! (keep in mind, he was married once before)

"Why don't you have any children?" He asked.  I laughed inside.  Truthfully, I do not want children.  That is something that I am adamant about.  I have never had the desire to reproduce.  "I don't really want any."  Having nine children himself, he was perplexed.

"I love all my children," he said, looking down at his son.  "I would never do anything differently."
Of course not, I thought to myself.  You have it all.  He then leaned back and fell asleep as I sat there, staring at that view beyond.  The family dog came out and tugged at my pants and the other kids would be arriving home from school soon.  Sister was quiet for the most part, but eventually showed me the place.  We went into the basement and then to the loft.  I saw the bedroom where he had a massive bed all surrounded by toy trucks.  The bathtub was her "pride and joy" as she put it.  Outside on the deck was a hot tub.  The loft was where their office was. 



About an hour later we parted ways.  Surely now, you wonder what this man of industry does for a living.  It's not something that one may think.  He had no higher education whatsoever.  In fact, when my little cousin was talking about going to college, he told her college was stupid.  Just right out told her.  If there's one thing about this man of industry, it's that he's a straight talker.  In fact, he's just a regular ol' truck driver.  He hauls cars across the country for a living.  That's it!  No fancy office job, no MBA or PhD.  No JD.  Heck, I don't even know if he finished high school.  He sits behind the wheel of a big rig and claims to make well over $100k a year.  No student debt. 

Something for you all to think about.