This is the eighth in a series of ten posts focusing on the Recession in America and the impacts it is having on things other than your 401k and personal finances. Check out the first seven posts in this series titled -
Recession in America – What about our pets?
Recession in America – Home Foreclosures
Recession in America – Unexpected Landlords
Recession in America – Abandoned Subdivisions
Recession in America – Trading Stocks not Investing
Recession in America – Freelance Jobs
Recession in America – Gardening
I recently read of yet another growing trend that is a direct result of the recession in America. Because of skyrocketing job loss and unemployment, husbands and wives are looking for work any place they can find it – even if it is out of state. Jobs are hard to come by these day which is why couples are looking for any type of open jobs they are qualified for. This has led to a number of families being broken apart for months if not years because of the economic recession.
It appears that often times an out-of-work spouse will find a job that is at least several hours away making it an impossible daily commute. This means that the other spouse is left behind more than likely with the children to continue on managing the household – sometimes trying to sell or rent out the home so they can move to the new location. This has caused a lot of stress and strain on marriages and relationships for these long distant families.
It is very unfortunate that families are being forced into these types of situations. I know from first hand experience (see below) that it can be very difficult living away from a spouse and child for an extended period of time. I just hope that these families can get by during these hard times and everything will work out for the best.
My Long Distant Story
Almost two years ago, my family went through a similar situation. While I had a good job and stable income from my employer, my wife and I were looking for a way for her to quit her job so she could stay home with our children. In order to make that possible, I needed to find another job that paid much better so we could financially support ourselves. We also wanted a larger home to make room for our new addition (youngest son) who was to be born in a couple of months.
I decided to start job hunting in other locations besides the state we lived in, as unemployment had already been on the rise there. I was fortunate enough to find a new job that would give me a 20% raise from what I had been currently making. The only catch was that the job was 12 hours away from where we were living. After long debate, my wife and I decided to make our life changing decision and I accepted the job offer.
As a transition period, I was separated from my wife and oldest son for two months while she stayed back to prepare our home for sale and to work out any other details before our official move. As I needed to be at my new job, I moved several months before the rest of my family and stayed with friends until my wife and son officially moved.
From first hand experience I can tell you that this was the longest and hardest two months of my life. I often second guessed our decision as I really missed my family. I can’t imagine how hard it must be for other families to go even longer without seeing each other. I give a lot of credit to people going through this and to all the military families who go through longer separations from their loved ones that my family experienced.
Final Thoughts
I would just like to end by mentioning another reason why I am working so hard to create passive income. Creating passive income will allow my family and I to live a very flexible life. If I were to lose my job, I would probably have to look for new employment in another state. I don’t want to be separated from my wife and two young boys again. I want to be there for them every day to see them grow up. I will even go a step further and say that I want to create passive income so that I can drop them off at school someday and go to their baseball games without worrying about work and getting the time off. Just another great example of how passive income can change your life!
Have you experienced being separated from your loved ones for an extended amount of time?
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Right after we had our second child, the hospital where I worked as a therapist had to close its doors. I interviewed for a position at a second hospital, and was ecstatic to get the job, until I found out that the hours had been changed. I had to work every other weekend, and from 3pm to 11 pm. My wife was also working full-time at the time, and my mother-in-law was watching our precious kids. I’m SO glad that I am not in that predicament now, but having to work when my kids and wife were at home was VERY hard.
Steve’s last blog post..Do You Recognize these Early Warning Signs of Career Atrophy?
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pfincome Reply:
April 6th, 2009 at 11:13 pm
@Steve – Being without your family for long periods of time is very difficult – especially with young children.
pfincome’s last blog post..Recession in America – Building Your Savings
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