Diagnosed Mortal #4
Regarding money...I laugh at this now but it took me an entire lifetime to get to the joke...and that was after many frustrating adult years of poverty and confusion. It was a hard lesson. I have never been an authority on money. I was raised, as I stated in Different Ways, to put finance and employment above all things. I thought, for most of my life, that if there was money; there was a way. The real danger in the world was being a victim of poverty. There was nothing better to do with one's life than find gainful employment. Like my family before me, I moved my life in the world through job opportunities. If there was work in Timbuktu, that is where I went. It didn't matter if Timbuktu was an awful place to live...if there was work, I went there without question.
My knowledge about money was extremely limited. It came solely from a place of my American cultural immersion....advertising...capitalism...other's expectations. I noticed some things about the flow of money in my life and recognized that it had a kind of mysterious nature to it. I opted out of ambitions around money. I never truly believed in its redemptive qualities.
...I was living like the money was king
I let it have the power on me
Now I recognize the funniest thing
Is now I'm broke and now I'm finally free....
With money and lifestyle...I was happy with just enough because from what I saw, the existing exchange had a manipulative and unpleasant nature to it that rankled my sense of independence. That said, I have never suffered around money as many have; neither too little nor too much. Someone or something always stood with me as I faced the wolf at the door. Somehow there was always an eleventh hour tacked on to any financial hardship I endured allowing me just enough to get by.
It strikes me as strange now, how I equated my frustration with monetary exchange to sex in this essay written on January 3, 2017. What a difference a few years makes. Here, I wax philosophical in reflection on the lucre in this audio file.
Deathy Tip: I don't have a lot to say about estate planning and those issues of how to navigate the valuable stuff like cars, houses, and villas in the south of France. What I do know is this one tip - and this is especially necessary if you are single - there will need to be access to your finances if something happens to you. Rent, mortgages, car payments and utilities still need to be paid. THINGS that cost money need to be fielded or horrible penalties could accrue. Someone needs to have access to your cash.
Adding a person to your accounts is the easiest. It can also be the most dangerous. Sharing your accounts with an offspring or a trusted friend can make all your money their money and often that is not a prudent way to go for many people. Your first move in this case is to secure a Power of Attorney. This person only has access to your funds if you are incapacitated. Here is an example of what that form might look like. It may be slightly different for your state. The good news is, you don't need a law degree to do this. It is pretty straight forward. It will be a notarized document, most likely, so a little foot work will be involved and part of your day will be shot doing it. It is important though if you want to protect your assets and make things a whole lot easier for people scrambling to figure out how to help you in a crisis.
Why I picked this music: When I first heard this song by George Harrison, what I thought of was how we are suckered into too many exchanges in our lives based on suggestion and seduction...and these lures and promises of redemption go way back in our lineage. It is time to change the story...that is all it is; a story that everyone has invested in. Perhaps it is time to withdraw from it and create something better as I suggest in the audio file.
George Harrison, Brainwashed, (2002) from the album by the same name.
~For the curious: this Blogpost explains my motivation and intention for this series of 20 essays in the Diagnosed Mortal series~