Today I’m traveling the backroads of my mind, trying to catch elusive thoughts that come in the early dawn, and the subject is money. Income tax time brings to the foreground that gross income figure. It seems high, not only because of the perspective of other early years when it was much less but also because it doesn’t include deductions for all the federal, state and local taxes.
Where did it all go? There seems to be more income that doesn’t have to be spent on necessities in this period of our lives. Our children are launched from the nest, and the house is paid for. How to spend money wisely and in a manner that gives the greatest satisfaction is the big question.
A retired person is likely to have a closet full of clothes in various stages of newness. How difficult it is to welcome a new purchase into the house with all those clothes taking up space. Many are good only for gardening in, some even good only for painting in. Others are perfectly good but a little snug and uncomfortable. Also, being retired seems to mean not dressing up very often.
Still, a retired person’s image of himself/herself is almost as fragile as a teenager’s. Passing muster in front of a mirror isn’t easy. So some clothing purchases have brought satisfaction.
Abraham Lincoln once said that he liked to see a man who was proud of his house and who lived so that his house was proud of him. Fixing up the place gives satisfaction because, if it’s done right, we enjoy living with the results. We painted a bedroom and bought new carpet for it. What a lift to the spirit! That room hadn’t had its face lifted since the time our teenaged daughters called it their own. Now those daughters have teenagers of their own.
Obviously, we planned to have that color scheme a long time. This brings me to the next thought. If the money is spent for things that last, it brings satisfaction. Yet many purchases seem destined for the landfill weeks after they are bought. Toys break, electronic gadgets can’t be fixed, or it costs more to fix them than they cost originally.
An environmentally correct attitude toward purchases can be as much of a straitjacket as a healthy diet. Spending money eating out gives pleasure because it gives the cook in the family a chance to taste someone else’s cooking. It is the happiest occasion if it also includes good conversation with friends.
Trying new dishes in a restaurant and trying to duplicate them at home gives a new challenge to cooking. Travel to visit family and friends has brought great satisfaction. What a wonderful reunion we had with our four children and their families at Ocracoke Island in North Carolina last summer.
Other travels included chances to walk in beautiful places and explore the great natural wonders of our country. Those memories make the aggravation of travel and the money spent seem worthwhile. The money we spend for the privilege of swimming in the wintertime and exercising indoors at the YMCA has brought rewards of health, strength, and endurance. We look forward to seeing friends there, too.
Gardening and buying new plants brings satisfaction. That may be the riskiest investments we make. Sometimes they grow and sometimes we haven’t learned enough about their requirements and the plants die.
Books and magazines can be shared. My imagination expands when I see a really great movie or video so that rental money is not begrudged expecially when the money goes to the library. Finally, sharing with those who are less fortunate brings satisfaction that lasts, but it is hard to choose among so many worthwhile efforts.
Where the money goes says a lot about a person’s philosophy of life. Today I’ve shared a little of mine. I would appreciate hearing your ideas.
-Mary Lilly