Baskadia

「京大医学部４名合格講師」による受験対策講座（１１０）

Poverty was the greatest motivating factor in my life.  (Jimmy Dean)

　最近、日本では「親ガチャ」という言葉が拡散している。親が貧乏だと子供も自分の生きる選択肢が極端に狭められて貧乏にならざるをえない、という一種の運命論だ。

　そうだろうか？

　私の親は極貧ではなかったが金持ちではなかった。姉二人は高卒で、大学に行かせてもらったのは私だけだった。もし、私が国立大学に合格できなかったら私立大学に行かせる余裕はなかったような気がする。

　では、私は不幸かというと幸福だと思っている。娘が三人産まれた時に

「本人たちが望めば、絶対に大学に行かせる」

　という決意をした。だから、貧乏な生活に陥るわけには行かない。それが、働く大きな動機づけとなった。

　Recently, the term "parental gacha" has been spreading in Japan. It is a kind of fatalism that if parents are poor, their children must also become poor because their own life options are extremely limited.


　Is this true?


　My parents were not extremely poor, but they were not rich either. My two older sisters graduated from high school, and I was the only one who was allowed to go to college. If I had not been accepted to a state university, I don't think they could have afforded to send me to a private university.



　So, am I unhappy or happy? When my three daughters were born.

I made a decision that if they wanted to, I would definitely send them to college.

　I made a decision to do so. Therefore, I could not fall into a life of poverty. That was a big motivation for me to work.