believe me, if we knew then what we know now, both of us would have done govt work meaningless or not instead of working the private sector, since the govt system can never fire you, and you are just guaranteed every holiday, great vacation, bennies and the pension at 20-30 yrs...
and believe me, most people would not willingly devote decades of their working lives to a company only to have that company go bankrupt and loose their entire retirement...
bad things have happened to millions and millions thru no fault of their own and yet there are those that think they're just smarter,more moral, more handsome because they didn't get hit with the hard knocks of life....
small minds and small hearts...
I have always lived by that concept. Where I have been most lucky was my parents. My parents were great. That was the luck of the draw. But I know with people with great parents who struggle all of their lives. There is a luck element, but largely life is what we make it.
My wife and I worked very hard for a lot of years. Many hours. But we were doing the Dave Ramsey thing before anyone ever heard of Dave Ramsey. That's not luck... that's called sacrafice.
I tell people, save your money, give your tithe to the church, and don't live above your means. And, don't put all of your eggs in one basket. And with a little bit of luck it will work out for you.