Welcome to America: Land of the Tired, Home of the Stressed

Throughout American history, we have always worked hard to make our country a better place. We work and work to provide for our families, get that new car, or for self-gratification. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Jack is my father, he works hard, everyday providing for my mom, my brother and me. He can never relax, he is constantly stressed, he is my personal account of seeing America as stressed out. There is that drive, the need to succeed. A drive so strong you will go through any stress to achieve it. Compared to other countries such as: Spain, Italy and Sweden. We get the least amount of vacation days during the year. Americans are overworked, overtired and under stress, the work ethic is to work to your maximum capacity, this makes it tough for the worker to relax and enjoy what he has worked so hard for.

My dad, he is the best man I know on earth. He works at least 14 hours a day, either at his operation or working the numbers at home. Always trying to succeed more and more. His determination exhausts him so much, when he does get a chance to sit down and relax his phone will ring or he’ll get a call. Never getting a moment to himself, never having that moment of peace. As he sits there and watches TV, I sit beside him and I can feel his brain working rattling through ideas. The operation he runs is the work of twenty-five men, all done by him and his assistant who helps organize. He keeps in touch with five or more associates a day, checking where his money is going, seeing if the inventory is coming in. If you ever doubt Americans have trouble relaxing, look at my father and then tell me they don’t.

A reason why we as Americans have high strung relaxation is the drive to succeed and the stresses sitting in the back of our minds. Went I am at school, home or just about to get in bed message flash across my mind: “Did I get that done?” “What is due today?” “I need to finish this essay.” A constant mini-planner in my head going off 24-7. The drive to succeed in the workforce goes hand-in-hand with school. Now more than ever the pressure is on to get good grades, go to the best college. Until you ultimately get the job to succeed. Who has time to relax and enjoy it after all that? It is sad that such a motivated country can’t find the enjoyment of relaxing. What have we become? Too in tuned to the future to stop and see the moment. Over the summer I moved into my new house. We had moved all our things in two days by ourselves and two of my dad’s friends My family and I worked long hours when we first moved in, every weekend we’d get something done.. After we were done moving in my dad started on the landscaping. We put plants everywhere. After that project we installed a watering system, then a lightning system, where I put together over 300 lights. Until today I still have not sat in