So... this is why we have it made.

Ok. There are some really really interesting things about this society that I think are very important to take into consideration when thinking about why wealth is more than just the dollar amount that shows up on your electronic bank statement.

1. People live here with their families until they get married, generally, or establish a legitimate, career after graduating from college. You live with your parents until your late 20s most of the time. Late 20s...! Because, it is SO incredibly difficult to survive on your own.

2. Today, one of my classmates told me that the lowest hourly wage you can get paid is 4 soles an hour. That is less than $1.50. However, he for example, makes 10 soles per hour which is about $3.50.

3. People tend to ask me how I got the money to get myself here, to Peru. And I told them, I saved up a lot of my money from the scholarships I got and then I continued to work so that I could save up more money and go to school. And they told me, "Here, that would never happen. The scholarships don't exist and wages are so inadequate and maintaining a job (that will pay for your necesities) and school at the same time is pretty much impossible." And what's more, if they wanted to come to the U.S. the exchange for them sucks! 3 to 1. And our immigration system... well, as Sam once told me, immigration is a complicated issue. Actually getting the visa and paying for all that nonsense... Oh man. It seems impossible, even from my perspective.

4. Getting into college. Is a whole different story.

Anyways, I've realized that living all by myself (in the United States), essentially, is rather difficult, as most all of you know. And also, it can be kind of sad and overwhelming in it's own way, but at least I have that choice of independence if I want it.
Here, that choice doesn't exist most of the time. Even if you wanted to work your ass off to live independently, the odds against you are stacked so high, that it is really an insurmountable task.
There's a good chance you have: a job, a bank account, a currency with an exchange rate in your favor, some way to get the health care you need if worse comes to worse, a high school education, access to at least a technical college, a good comand of the English language, internet access, citizenship in a country whose foreign policy decisions dictate what happens in the rest of the world, and the possibility of living alone.