John, first I must wish your son a happy birthday! My daughter’s is 10/23 🙂
It sounds like you’ve raised them right, that both kids are invested in leaving the world better than they’ve found it. I understand your reflections on how you grew up – as a daughter of immigrants, my upbringing was “work hard, get good grades and the best job you can for financial stability.” I deeply respect what my parents went through in order to give me a better life. AND I think there’s opportunity to refine our success metrics as we mature, and as the world around us changes.