IT DON'T COME EASY...


Ringo Starr sang back in the day, "I don't ask for much, I only want trust, and you know it don't come easy." I'm a big college basketball fan, and I read with a tinge of sadness about the passing of Rick Majerus. Majerus won 517 games during his coaching career, and died of heart failure at the age of 64. One of the many tributes to his life talked about his upbringing in Wisconsin. His parents were blue collar folks and lifelong Democrats. Dana O'Neill of ESPN included this paragraph in her tribute to Majerus:

     "Here was a man whose parents challenged him to think at every turn, taking him to civil rights
      marches and union rallies. He was reared to understand that for most people, life didn't come
      easy -- for his own family included. His father was a union labor leader, his mother a housewife
      and part-time factory worker in blue-collar Milwaukee."

That paragraph got me to thinking that this is the story of every American, whatever side of the political aisle you may find yourself. Life is not easy. We are all trying to make our way. We are all trying to put food on the table, clothes on our backs, and a roof over our heads. For all the talk of rich Republicans born with a silver spoon in their mouths, there are just as many Democrats in the entertainment industry who have way more than they know what to do with. That's the irony of it all: there are just as many with more than enough on either side of the aisle. Yet few were born that way. They had to work and persevere and take risks. They refused to quit when the going got rough.

Some worked hard all of their lives and ended up in gated communities. Some worked hard all their lives and ended up in a two bedroom, two bath house and made it a home. It is the story of America. So today, I just want to honor those Americans who refused to quit. You did what it took to take care of your family. You worked extra hours, sometimes even extra jobs, because you are the kind of people who take care of your business. You don't ask for much, and you have earned that trust that Ringo sang about back in the day. It doesn't matter what side of the aisle you find yourself today. We are Americans. We get it done. That's what we do, because it don't come easy.