- Business

TheReview Monday, December 24,1990 — Al1

More to life than money management

Managing your money can eas-
- be a full-tume occupation. But
Or most people, it shouldn’t be.

Does that sound strange coming
from somebody like me who, you
might think, spends| every waking
hour (and perhaps even every
sleeping hour) keeping up with all
the latest financial developments
and dreaming up new ways to save
and make money?

There’s certainly no shortage of
information as far as keeping up:
the general and business news in
local and national newspapers,

constant radio and TV news and -

business features, weekly business

newspapers and journals, monthly

business magazines, bi-weekly

and monthly tax and business
__ newsletters, and an unending flow
Sof reports from accounting finns,
brokerage houses and other finan-
cial institutions.

Indeed, anybody who takes
more than a passing interest in
personal money management
should be exposed to at least some
of the preceding information
sources on a regular basis.

Although some people look on
making and manipulating money
as an end in itself, most of us
should see personal financial plan-
ning as simply a part — albeit an
essential part — of our lives.

Far more important, if I may
suggest (and I do, at the end of
every financial speech and
seminar I give), is your over-all
quality of life.

We get so busy dealing with the
everyday crises at home and work
(sometimes the two places are the
same) we tend to forget the every-
day delights of simply being alive.

Years ago I took a course in
Victorian English literature. One
of the essays, by Thomas Carlyle,
dealt with appreciating the fact
that we exist. Carlyle cited the
ability of being able to move our
hands as a wonder all in itself.

I always remembered that pas-
sage but had been unable to find it
again until recently, when one of
my Clients, an English professor,

on hearing of my quest, kindly
located the excerpt and sent it to
me,

Taken from the 17th paragraph
of Chapter 8 of Book III of
Carlyle’s “Sartor Resartus,” the
paragraph runs as follows:

““... were it not miraculous,
could I stretch forth my hand and
clutch the Sun? Yet thou seest me

daily stretch forth my hand and
therewith clutch many a thing, and
swing it hither and thither.

“Att thou a grown baby, then, to
find that the Miracle lies in miles
of distance, or in pounds avoirdu-
pois of weight; and not to see that
the true inexplicable God —
revealing Miracle lies in this, that I
stretch forth my hand at all; that I
have free Force to clutch aught
therewith?”

Look at your hand for a
moment. Extend and flex the fin-
gers. Move your hand. You do it all
so effortlessly, yet isn’t it truly a
miracle that you are able to send
that message from your brain and
have your fingers and hand move?

The computer may be amazing,
but our brain still is the most
amazing creation of all — along
with the rest of our body.

Of course we aren’t going to
spend ever moment marveling at
our ability to think and move. If
we did, we wouldn’t get much
useful thinking and moving done.

But I do encourage you to invest
a few moments now and again —
especially during this festive sea-
son — in an appreciation of the

‘’d pui any of those pleasures up
against getting an extra quarter of
a per cent on an RRSP’

FF Ee NSN,
X 7-9764 5th St.
655-1984
om

everyday miracles we take for
granted.

Even when life gets oppressive,
experiencing those tough times at
least indicates we are still alive
and able to function. And usually
it’s better to live through a tough
time than not to live at all.

The “simple” miracles can be
the best: :

— Moving your hand, fingers,
feet, toes and the rest.

— Savoring a cool drink on a
hot day.

— Soaking in a hot tub on a
cold and miserable day.

— Smelling the roses (unless
you have hay fever).

— Finding a gas station on the
highway just as the car’s gas gauge
needle dips below empty.

— Thrilling to a closely fought
sports event.

— Meeting a loved one at the
airport.

— Hearing that you got the job.

— Having a refreshing night’s
sleep — or afternoon nap.

Id put any of those pleasures up
against getting an extra quarter of a
per cent on an RRSP. (Sull, if that
higher rate would produce an extra
$4,387 of tax-sheltered growth
over 15 years, you could then
increase retirement income and
grow even more roses to smell!).

Mike Grenby is an Vancouver- '

based columnist and independent
personal financial adviser; he
will answer your questions as
space allows in his column —
write to him c/o The Review, P.O.
Box 2070, Sidney, B.C. V8L 3C5.

K

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