I’ve only recently come to understand the term “generational wealth” and what it means for those with and without it. If asked a couple of years ago, I would have said it applied to extremely wealthy families who had large estates. Adult children who inherited the vast assets of their deceased parents reaped the rewards of having been the offspring of that wealth. I didn’t see this as my world at all.
I remember a few years back, a friend sold their very large family home in her upscale suburb to a young couple. I wondered aloud how the buyers, in their early thirties, could afford such a home when my friend and her husband had worked so hard for it. I voiced dismay at other young couples in this suburb buying expensive homes. Were they all heart surgeons or top executives? How did they rise so meteorically in their careers that they could afford such houses? My friend replied, “Trust funds.” Ohhhh!
So that was my idea of generational wealth.
Only in the last few years have I understood that indeed I have been the recipient of generational wealth. My father paid his way through college in the 1950’s, but he and my mother were able to foot the entire bill for all three of their daughters to attend fine colleges. My husband’s parents took out loans to pay for their sons’ colleges. Without the financial debt of a college education hanging over our heads, my husband and I felt that we could afford to take on the debt of medical school and actually choose a specialty that appealed to us rather than choosing one that offered more money. When it was time for our daughters to go to college, we were able to pay for it.
I was absolutely the beneficiary of generational wealth as were my children. Not everyone has that advantage. And higher education is just one example. Housing is another. If someone is not able to buy their own home, and instead, must always rent, then there is no chance of accumulating wealth in the form of real estate and passing it on. This concept seems to be getting more and more elusive for many in today’s society.
But thanks to my cousin Leigh’s wisdom, I have another understanding of “generational wealth,” not one based purely on financial matters.
I had the benefit of growing up in a stable home with loving parents who valued education, the arts, kindness, a giving spirit, decency, honesty, empathy, and community. (The list is probably a lot longer than this, but these values come to mind first.) My husband came from a similar family, as did my two sons-in-law. And both sets of my grandparents. And my cousins. THIS is also generational wealth—the passing on of values that lead to the development of good people.
Of course, it doesn’t always work this way. Good people can come from chaotic homes. Some people may have had all the advantages of a values mindset, yet still make decisions that lead to less than happy lives. Mental health issues can cloud this dynamic, too.
I am so grateful for this wealth that I have inherited from my parents, and from theirs. I trust that my husband and I have passed it on to our children, and that they in time, will do the same for theirs. I much prefer this wealth to the monetary one.