On live-ing, translated…
The First Half of Their Lives, They Lived on Like Princesses
In my dating experience, I’d found, that there’s a kind of princess who are actually of the most excellent.
And, these “princesses” are mostly women in their thirties here in Taiwan, mostly, they’re very well-educated, for instance, had gone abroad to get a degree, with a master’s education, with excellent foreign language abilities, and many of them had worked for international companies too.
This group of “princesses” grew up as the economy was taking off in Taiwan in the seventies and eighties, their parents mostly aren’t from rich and well-to-do backgrounds, most of their parents are entrepreneurs, and, in those day and age, they’d watched the markets, and took the opportunities, and, what’s more important was, that they’d worked hard, to accumulate a lot of wealth.
And, their assets had already surpassed being a little rich, they’d become what I’d called the middle-upper class. Meaning, that they didn’t have the money like those CEOs from the upper class, but compared to the regular members of the middle class, they are, apparently, a lot richer.
And these parents who’d relied on themselves maybe, they hadn’t gotten too much education when they were growing up, in the poor conditions of this country. And so, as they’d made it, most of them expected that their own offspring can get into colleges, or move to another country, to get educated there.
And so, because of this, Taiwan had managed to train what I’d called, “half-way princesses”.
These “halfway princesses”, are not those with the Princess Syndromes. There had been a long running history of the Princess Syndrome, especially what’s trending right now, the princesses are those who dreamed of marrying rich one day, and just sat on their asses and do nothing. They’d hoped that they can get lucky without the hard work, and lived on easily, like princesses.
And the group of ladies I’m talking about, why are they only halfway as princesses? Because they’d grown up in rich and well-to-do families, received a certain amount of education, especially, as the parents wanted them to go to another level, the parents would force them to take up a ton of talents such as piano, ballet, horseback riding, etc., etc., etc., at the same time when their parents are making the money, they’re willing to allow their kids to travel on extravagance, buying them name brands, driving those name brand cars, attending those nobility schools.
These parents who grew up hard, would be rather strict on their daughters. (the education of the sons, well, that’s another topic for another time.)
But one day, Cinderella will have to face up to the realities of her life one day. When they graduated, the entire world is not the same as when their parents started out in business, and, the opportunities as well as the wealth are no longer here anymore. Although they’re pretty well-rounded and well-taught too, but because they’d worked away from home, or they wanted to become independent, moved out of their parents’ homes, even though they are paid a lot higher than the average, and can afford the costs of living, but, they couldn’t afford their original lifestyle, and, all of a sudden, their status went from being a princess, to ordinary people.
Swiping the parents’ credit cards, following the parents around, and they get the luxuries, and, they’d lived in mansions with the butlers, but no longer, first half of their lives, they’d lived like princesses, but the second half of their lives, they can only rely on themselves, this, is what I meant by “halfway princesses”.
Waiting for the Trials & Tribulations that Came Later on in Life
In the western societies, there are more visible examples of these halfway princes and princesses, the western parents, after they’d raised their kids to a certain age, they’d wanted them to strike out on their own, even IF the parents had set up trust funds for the children, it wouldn’t be for life. The parents in Taiwan are different, some had even bought houses for their daughters, to solve the basic needs. It’s just that, as the princesses got the blows from reality, some could only move back in with the parents. Of course, there are those princesses who’d excelled in business, became successful, became self-made princesses too, but, those, are rare. As for those princesses whose parents lost all their assets as the economic turned, and no longer got the royal treatments, they can only live as, halfway princesses.
And still, their biggest trials are in making friends and finding a mate.
What sort of men can these halfway princesses entrust themselves to? Naturally, it’s less than the minority population of men. And, not all these ladies are beautiful like Snow White, plus they’d been spoiled since they were younger, and would be harder to get along with. More importantly, they’d once lived as princesses, so, naturally, they had their eye sights set higher than ordinary men, and most of them, don’t come out winning in marriages either. How will you, men, deal with these ladies who had become halfway princesses?
But, I still loved those halfway princesses very much, so long as they don’t get taken by vanity, and don’t commit suicide as life got harder, don’t put themselves on that high pedestal, most of them became excellent females in the world. They’d grown up in well-to-do environments, are willing and able, and enjoyed helping others out, is generous toward others, aren’t very invasive in nature, and knew the good life, well-behaved, literary, artistic, and knows very much about everything, with a world view too.
I truly believe, that we’d raised a bunch of great women who will be taking charge of the world in the futures.
But, if we wanted these half-way princesses to carry the burdens of the future of Taiwan, I’m no longer as optimistic. There ARE no free lunches, even if you’re a princess, just by half, you’d still pale by measurement to the other ladies who worked hard on their own, because they’re more driven, and goal-oriented.
There’s no having your cake and eat it too, is there?
And so, the point of the story is, you’d RATHER BE a QUEEN, instead of a dumb-blonde princess, because the princesses here from the above are usually spoiled, had it made, and, after their lives fall out, they’d had a hard time, adapting to reality, and, if they didn’t start out as princesses, then, the adjustment when reality HIT would be as difficult, so, don’t be a princess ladies, BE a QUEEN, because we QUEENS can take care of ourselves, we don’t need ANYBODY, we’re self-reliant, able-bodied, and, there are also, many women who are like that in today’s world.
Mirroring the World 
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