In Bounds
By Jack MacKenzie, CGCS
Sometimes the idiom, “an apple doesn’t fall far from the tree,” when a child has a similar character or similar qualities to his or her parents, is quite accurate. My father, born in 1928, a product of the great depression with very, very limited resources, great unemployment and basically harder times than I have or will ever know in my lifetime, grew up appreciating that money could dramatically improve upon the harsh realities of an impoverished environment. His passion, perhaps instilled by his father and supported by life experiences, was gainful employment beginning at a very young age. Odd pick-up jobs grew into part-time and then full-time opportunities providing my Dad a strong self-esteem and perhaps
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of more importance, the money necessary to live without worries of destitution. A proficient worker with the intelligence and motivation to succeed, he did very well for himself. Starting with the proverbial ‘nothing’, Dad carved his place in society by applying the other idiom, “living to work and not working to live.” Self-employment, with busy days, long weeks and many family sacrifices allowed him to achieve his goals. His example of personal drive instilled in me a similar predisposition. For many years, hard work, practically compulsive employment, was the blood of my existence. I caddied as a youth, ironing and rubber banding my first $100 in dollar bills, ruining my mother’s iron in the process. Bussing tables occupied my early teen years until I turned 16 and was employed at the White Bear Yacht