[GrunchCan]

I'm not a psychologist, priest, scholar or ethicist. I'm just a regular gomputer programmer guy. I'm not an authority on such things, so forgive me for not backing this up with empirical evidence or logical arguments. But...

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I guess I feel guilty because their lives are not better.

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Thier lives are better.

Thier lives are better b/c of the financial support you've given them over the years. Thier lives are better b/c of the home you've given them. Thier lives are better b/c of the sacrifices you've made for them, the emotional support you've given them, the movies you've taken them to and the dinners you've had together. They aren't living on the street, and they have a family that loves and cares for them. That's a hell of a lot.

Not only that, but the world is better too. You've helped in a very substantial way to raise blank children in to responsible, well-meaning & contributing members of society. I've never had kids myself, but judging from how screwed up the world is, I'd say it's a damn hard job. You've also made the world better by being a role model for other regular people, like me. Even if you didn't enjoy a particular task while you were doing it, just the fact that you did it and did your best at it speaks volumes to your charater, and gives us all something to live up to.

You have a hell of a lot to be proud of, and not one thing to feel guilty for. Go play poker. You deserve it.