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Just Between Us

Rethinking Tough Times

Craig Merrill

Mind the Gap

    The fizzling economy, which alarmingly has turned into a global meltdown, has prompted many of us to chart new courses of action in our lives. This same economic pinch has sparked a new (albeit sometimes reluctant) openness in contemplating unconventional approaches to conventional lifestyle choices. But all that new thinking has turned out to be a positive thing.
    This is definitely true for parents and students who are rethinking the formerly predictable college route of the student going off to college immediately on the heels of high school. Instead, parents and students are looking at options they may have not seriously considered under different circumstances.
    One alternative allows students to take a “gap year”—a one-year break between high school and college—and I’ve read about more and more kids doing this. Some welcome the year break as a reprieve from the mounting pressures of getting admitted to colleges. Others use the period to seek opportunities to work, volunteer, travel, build confidence and gain some maturity before plunging into another intense academic and social environment after the pressures of increasingly competitive high school experience. In many cases, the decision to delay college has relieved both the parent and the student by providing a valued financial and psychological breather.
    Another expanding popular college lifestyle trend I’m noticing is more kids living at home while going to college. Families who thought they’d be the last to embrace this idea are finding it’s actually not so bad. I spoke with a friend whose daughter decided at the last minute to live at home and attend a junior college. My friend said, “My husband and I have had to adjust our expectations somewhat in terms of curfew and be clear about her share of chores, but other than that, having our daughter around a little longer than expected has been great—and the savings couldn’t have come at a better time.” While such a decision is not new, it’s definitely gaining wider appeal.
    Regardless of education costs, we all desperately wish that the economy would boom once again, but we’re not there yet and probably won’t be for a long while.
    In the meantime, people are making similarly smart decisions, born of necessity, elsewhere in their lives that parallel the ones parents and students are choosing when it comes to their college options. Folks are slowing down in general, stepping back and evaluating their lifestyle choices. Americans in debt are returning to core values and developing disciplines to live within their means. They—like almost everyone I know who is reviewing how he spends his time and money—schedule family time, picnics at the beach, potluck meals, visits to the library and sightseeing at home in their efforts to spend less.
    It’s too bad such dire circumstances are forcing this turn to simpler, more inventive ways of living when the simple approach is actually nice and a relief. There’s no longer any pressure to keep up with any expectations—because there’s no choice.
    Like some of those high school graduates taking a break, embracing a gap period and figuring out what we want and what we actually need might not be bad for us in the long run. And if we’re looking for a sliver of a silver lining in these economic hard times, this just might be it.

E-mail Gina Jaber at ginajab@yahoo.com.