Anatomy of a Snowflake-Part II
Atticus Met his College Girlfriend, Who Became his Life Partner.
Summary:
Alison sat in her final accounting class at Berkeley
She was naturally analytical and outgoing but reserved enough to avoid playing all her cards in the world around her
Alison's academic dedication was unwavering. She chose to focus on her studies, avoiding demonstrations and group activities. Her relentless pursuit of knowledge and academic excellence, shaped by her father's gifts, is truly inspiring.
She read many traditional classics, such as Atlas Shrugged, Fountainhead, The Jungle, Grapes of Wrath, and In Search of Meaning.
Despite her limited free time, Alison made strategic reading choices that would shape her future success. Her forward-thinking approach to reading expanded her knowledge and honed her analytical and strategic thinking skills, paving the way for her future achievements.
Her father gave her the gifts of 3 classics he had collected in hardcover earlier in his life.
They included Napoleon Hill's Think and Grow Rich, which instilled in her the value of self-reliance; Dr. Norman Vincent Peale's Power of Positive Thinking, which influenced her optimistic outlook; and Dale Carnegie's How to Win Friends and Influence People, which shaped her interpersonal skills.
She also focused on books about management styles, human character development, motivation, and the meaning of existence. Her favorite authors included Milton Friedman, Peter Drucker, Earl Nightingale, Viktor Frankl, and Ralph Waldo Emerson. She particularly appreciated Emerson's essay on Self-Reliance, written in 1841.
Article:
Early in her life, Alison learned to appreciate the struggle between capitalism, taxpayers, non-taxpayers, collectivism, and parasitic classes. Many subsets want to make a living on the backs of the capitalists and taxpayers. She knew that self-sufficiency, family, the rule of law, private property rights, and individualism were ideals for which she would strive. She realized the argument that productive and creative members of society want to contribute, including paying taxes, but have no interest in bearing the burden of all societal financial needs. Still, she believed her knowledge, wisdom, talent, intellectual capital, and resulting creative output belonged to her, not parasitical regulatory agencies hell-bent on redistribution. These beliefs were shaped by her experiences and the values instilled in her by her father.
Her natural major was accounting, with a minor in finance. She had always dreamed of becoming a CPA. From her early upbringing, individual accountability and self-sufficiency were drilled into her by her father, who owned and operated a few Goodyear Tire Stores. She gained work experience over the summers and school breaks as she would do his accounting and eventually acted as a general manager for one of his stores. She learned what it took to get saleable skills to enter the job market. Customer service, compassion, tenacity, and hard work came naturally. She adopted the strategy of making a profit instead of losing or breaking even in her father's business.
After graduating from Berkley and getting her CPA designation, she found employment with one of the Big Four accounting firms in the USA.
A college student, Atticus, was reacquainted when she was assigned to prepare the tax returns for his parents' firm.
The adage of opposites attract rang true. After a few months of playing catch-up, the friendship started to turn into something more. They looked forward to seeing each other, and their dates became more frequent. A magic moment arrived when both agreed to be exclusive.
After a year of dating, the topic of the future and family was frequently discussed. She had always dreamed about having a traditional family: two or three kids, a home of their own, cats, and dogs. The conversations were complex since they came from different backgrounds.
Remember that Atticus was a sociology major who developed limited salable skills for today's job market. He had spent the past few years working as a high school teacher. He taught kids to follow his path, both politically and culturally. Historical revisionism is handy when teaching kids to demand social justice for all humanity. Still, there is no mention of skills necessary to make a living other than living on someone else's tax dollars. Why not get a union job teaching kids about socialism/collectivism and working only one-half of the year? Alison, who was well on her way to becoming a lead CPA at her accounting firm, earned almost two times what Atticus made at his teaching job. They both agreed that having kids was their number one priority. Alison first brought up the compromise solution, saying she could be the primary breadwinner and that Atticus would become a stay-at-home dad.
Curious about what happened after their first and second child arrived? Atticus undergoes a profound transformation, shifting from his self-centeredness to a newfound compassion for others. His online friendships, once numerous, disintegrated as he chose to become a productive member of society, valuing real friendships over virtual ones. His journey of personal growth is a testament to the potential for change and transformation in all of us, offering a hopeful narrative of personal growth and change.
Growing a family allows us to experience tolerance, risk, happiness, and giving to others. Atticus understood that he now lived in a world that was not about him. He found joy in nurturing the pleasures of giving to others and sharing in their success. In this way, Alison and Atticus, along with their children, find true happiness and live happily ever after. Their story is a powerful reminder of the profound joy and fulfillment that family can bring, underscoring the warmth and comfort of familial bonds.
Thank you
Dan Harkey
Educator @ Private Money Lending Consultant
949 533 8315dan@danharkey.com
www.danharkey.com