Death is a Wake-Up Call
By Mike Hillyer | Related entries in Financial PlanningYesterday I was working away when I got a call from my mother: my maternal grandmother lay dying in the ICU of the local hospital and if I hurried I could say my goodbyes. It was a lowsy accent on a lowsy week that included getting a nasty case of food poisoning.
So what does that have to do with personal finance? Not much, but it gave me perspective: my grandmother was not a rich woman by any definition, she had been a widow for 37 years, raising 11 children as best she could while serving in her church and her community. She had her home and a bit of money in her old age, much of which she donated to her favorite cause. She used to have an old pinto, but eventually gave it away to a grandchild who needed it more than she did and opted for a motorized cart (all she needed in a small town where the shopping was only 2 blocks away).
She never had a lot, but what she had yesterday I can only hope for: as I arrived at the ICU there must have been a total of 30 loved ones here and there, gathered around the matriarch or their family, and I saw several arrive while I was there and I know several more arrived after I left.
In one week it would have been Canada Day, when she hosts an annual family reunion at her home. My mother spent the day with her 2 days ago and my grandmother was so excited by the prospect of having so many family members gathered around.
She was not rich by the standards of the world, but she was wealthier than some of the world’s richest men will ever be. Imagine, over a hundred children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and even great-great grandchildren gathered around you, enjoying the sun, a parade, games, and each other’s company. Not because they want to stay in your will, but out of love and companionship. That is something that a mansion with ten cars and a million dollars in the bank will never give you. Your material possessions and money will not gather around you as you pass into the next life, regardless of what you believe the next life holds. Your possessions and money will not mourn your loss and will not create a lasting legacy.
That is not to say that striving for wealth is wrong, just that it needs to be tempered with perspective, which is what seeing my grandmother surrounded yesterday by those who love her gave me. I can only hope for something similar when I pass away.
Vaya Con Dios Grandma
This entry was posted on Friday, June 24th, 2005 and is filed under Financial Planning. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.
June 24th, 2005 at 9:50 am
Thanks for sharing the story. It’s important to keep a pespective outside of the idea of acquiring as much wealth as possible.
June 24th, 2005 at 10:28 am
I’m sorry to hear about your loss.
June 24th, 2005 at 1:04 pm
Sorry to hear about your loss. It certainly is a wakeup call about how fast life can change and how it happens in a split second. I believe your grandmother was far richer than any guy measures himself in terms of financial numbers.
I personally don’t know what the point is in acquiring things. I’m 25 years old, work a good job but I don’t have a real desire to acquire anything. Granted, I’m saving money for a house but other than that, I have no real desire to acquire anything. In the end, I’m not taking any of this stuff with me after I die.
June 24th, 2005 at 7:40 pm
Mike,
Sorry to hear about your grandmother. It’s always hard to lose a loved one. I lost my only remaining grandmother a couple of years ago.
Tershania,
I think it is cool that you aren’t into material things. However, there is nothing wrong with saving for your own future. If you have the ability to save and provide for yourself, you leave resources that can be used on others who are less fortunate than you. If, on the other hand, you don’t save for the future, you become part of the problem.
The main thing is to not let material goods become your god.
JLP
AllThingsFinancial
June 24th, 2005 at 10:22 pm
JLP,
You’re right, you hit it right on the spot. There isn’t anything wrong with acquiring wealth. I love learning and investing in the stock market and love our capitalistic society here in the states. But I’m not caught up in buying the newest things or having the best. We should all be fortunate enough to know where our next meal is coming from.
BTW, I love your blog JLP!
June 25th, 2005 at 9:53 am
Thank for the support. I too do not place too much focus on acquiring things, but rather I live what I like to call the Canadian Dream(tm): no debt, paid for house, fairly new car, retirement fund.
June 27th, 2005 at 5:59 am
[...] y Blogger wants to remind us all what’s important in life in his post titled “Death Is a Wakeup Call.” It puts a little bit of perspective in a [...]
June 27th, 2005 at 3:11 pm
Thanks for sharing…that was a very profound story. And very true. I don’t know if you are religious or not, but I believe that when the bible speaks of building up for yourself “treasures in heaven” it is speaking of people. Your grandmother surely did that.
June 28th, 2005 at 4:56 am
For many of us, this is a large part of what we want money _for_. (I, for example, am saving up for a house in the suburbs, so that I’ll be able to host family holiday gatherings when my aunt is no longer able to do so.)
But it’s true…the most important kinds of wealth can’t be measured in dollars, and all the money in the world can’t buy most of the things that really matter in life.
June 28th, 2005 at 8:23 am
Thanks Mike, hearing you tell of the family’s love for mom has me in tears today. The family gathered around numbered in the hundreds, from the pulpit it was a sea of loved ones, grandma would have been so proud to see everyone gathered in tribute to her. She was indeed a rich woman. Thanks for putting this into words for me, as words are hard for me to find right now. She was a wonderful lady. I miss her.
June 28th, 2005 at 8:39 am
Mike,
I have enjoyed reading the comments of others about Grandma. It is nice to see that in this materialistic world that we live in, there are many people of many different faiths, who do have their priorities in order. Our families are the most importanat thing in this life, and one of the only things we can take with us to the next life. Thanks.
June 28th, 2005 at 10:52 am
Sorry to hear about your Grandmom. May she rest in peace.
August 13th, 2005 at 1:47 pm
understand what you mean. your grandmother was very very rich. i lost mine at the end of may, this year..
November 25th, 2005 at 12:26 am
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