By Greg Seaman • March 8th, 2009

It is all too obvious how difficult the financial crisis is for the average family. But the financial meltdown is an inevitable correction, which will result in a reality-based economic model and a return to healthier personal, family and social values.

As we look ahead to what economic forecasters are calling a protracted recession, it's quite discouraging and anxiety-provoking. As the scope of the crisis widens by the day, we are seeing the global scale of the problem. The growing interconnectedness of commerce and culture is becoming more apparent. Across the globe, economists, political leaders and people in general have a shared objective – how to best navigate ourselves through this time of transition.

As a child growing up the 1950s, I remember my parents working to maintain a middle-class lifestyle. While we were proud of the trappings of success, with the model year of the car in our driveway being the yardstick of family prosperity, the values of thrift and resourcefulness were still considered essential to our family well being. In our backyard, located modestly behind the decorative hedge and rows of peonies were carefully laid out beds of cabbages, lettuce, peas, broccoli and other seasonal produce, tended as a matter of course.

Behind the vegetable patch stood a large square-shaped clothesline that was always in use. Although we had an automatic washer and dryer, my mother could not bear to waste energy when the fresh air would dry our clothes and linens for free.

One of my responsibilities as a child was moving the lawn. As a skinny boy, I pushed an antiquated, clunky mover to get the job done. When we finally moved to the modern age and got a power mower, my father bought an electric mower. He did not want the fuss or the stink of dealing with gas-burning mower. While gas was cheap back then, electricity still cost less.

Just about every young boy on our street wore patches at the knees of our jeans. New clothes were reserved for Sunday church service and special events. There was pride in being thrifty. While my parents enjoyed the exuberance of the emerging post-war economy, there was still a bedrock common sense applied to all expenses, born of the cold reality of life during World War II....

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Location:  Vancouver, CA

Hello. My name is Greg Seaman, and I write the pages for Eartheasy. Here's a little information about my background and how the pages of Eartheasy have come into being. A native of Long Island, New York, I...