On the Ideal of Self-Support among the Aged

Several days ago I was eating with a graduate student, Sarula from Inner Mongolia, and a graduate school colleague, Robert Sigley. Sarula said it was her ambition to reach a position in life where, if she became an old woman without children, she would still be able to support herself comfortably. Not being able to resist, I said that, no, her aim should be to reach a position where she could support herself comfortably as an old woman, even if she did have children.

The Measure of Success

I had a beer with an incoming student from Nepal by the name of Sunil. I told him my wish was for him to become rich. He replied that becoming rich was not his goal, but that being successful was. This reminded me that I had said the same thing to a friend of mine just a day or two before. He further went on to say that he felt success could be measured in terms of satisfaction. This was a thought that I had not put into words before, so I felt I had profited by drinking beer together. I also thought that our future student/teacher relationship would be a good one.