The Good Life (36 page)

 

That’s an interesting question because it has many answers. It is defined by the person asked. To some, it means good health. To others, it means being with family, friends, or whoever brings warmth, love, and happiness to a relationship. It can mean opportunity for education, travel, leisure time, delicious food—many things, yes? And for most Americans, the good life describes an existence that includes everything already mentioned. It’s a life made easy and comfortable with material possessions, entitlements, and wealth. The wealthy can afford to do whatever they choose, and many aspire to this status. However, when we have whatever we think we want, do we lose sight of what we really want? Do we even know what that is anymore? The answer, like the question, is fluid. And it changes as we age and mature, as we experience loss, when we realize what we’ve been missing, or when we learn something unexpectedly.

 

Yes, Mike and Ann Barons are wealthy, and yes, we can learn from them. In some ways, they are very much like us. Of course, they don’t have to worry about the rent or the mortgage, or the grocery bill, or the electric bill, or job security. If Mike Barons lost his job, he wouldn’t need to find another one right away. But they do struggle. Ann is a wife, a mother, a daughter, and a friend, but she falls short in each of these important relationships. Mike is so occupied by his working life that he has lost track of his children and what’s important to them. And Nate and Lauren experience the same ups and downs of their less wealthy high school peers. The Baronses’ tremendous wealth gives them more options. But they still, like us, must overcome everyday obstacles.

 

The Good Life
is a story about an American family. Americans, I think, are interested in their own country and in the people who live here. When we listen to or watch the news, we are often taken to other countries—to learn about power or human rights struggles or economic issues or foreign culture. There are many books that also take readers to other countries, and to other time periods. And this is good, if we are not to become an ethnocentric nation of narrow-minded thinkers. As a break from these mental travels around the world, I think it’s also good to think and read about this country, about who lives here, and what makes us Americans.
StoryCorps
on NPR features short interviews by and about Americans. I am inspired by these stories aired every Friday because there is something in almost every one I’ve heard that I can either relate to or learn from.

 

Because the question “What is the good life?” has been bumping around my brain for a long time. It’s always been a relevant question, perhaps even more so in this challenging economic climate. In spite of our troubles, we all want to be taken away—to lavish summer lawn parties on perfect evenings, with fabulously dressed people drinking champagne under the stars and muted floodlights of a white marble mansion. We can be taken in by these images, thinking that those who have great wealth must in some way be more important, smarter, or simply better than the rest of us. And yet, I know this isn’t necessarily true. The idea for the novel came from a variety of sources, one of which was my interest in exploring the complications or pitfalls that can come with money.

 

Not at all. Wealth fascinates all of us because it is so powerful. People with money can do things; they can make a difference. They can use their money not only to enrich their lives, but also to change the dire circumstances of others. Until Ann’s parents arrive, the Baronses are focused on themselves. They are not particularly charity minded, preferring to cater to their personal desires. This, much more than the amount of money they have, may be the source of their dissatisfaction or disappointment.

 

Well, that’s up to the person with the money. We all have choices. One of the best choices I think we can make with our money and our time is to balance it. A little for me, a little for you, a little for him, a little for her. Time at the office, time at the gym, time for others, time for a good book. We all have things we have to do—whether it’s working or raising children or caring for parents, or going to school—and that takes most of the time and/or the money. We also have free time and a percentage of disposable income. What we choose to do with all of this time and money can define the “goodness” in our lives.

 

 

 

ABOUT THIS GUIDE

 

 

The suggested questions are included
to enhance your group’s
reading of Susan Kietzman’s
The Good Life.

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Copyright © 2013 by Susan Kietzman

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ISBN: 978-0-7582-8132-6