My hubby and I had a conversation the other day that made me feel I should share my personal thoughts on this. This post is about savings and retirement. I think we all have the ability to choose how we want to spend our money. For myself, living with metastatic breast cancer has made me re-evaluate how I spend my money, or more so what I'm saving for. I believe in being responsible with my money-absolutely!! However, after being diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer I also realized that the whole "save for a rainy day" is here and now! I've experienced the rainy day, heck I've experienced a bloody downpour!!
Obviously, if I would have been one of the many women in this world who would have been lucky enough to have children then my perspective may be different on this. However, I'm not so I won't delve further into it. My hubby and I decided that we would enjoy every minute doing the things we love, and buying whatever makes us happy. What has always fascinated me is when people talk about saving for retirement. I can't do this or I can't do that because they're "saving." Saving for what exactly is what I ask?? We accumulate our wealth through the years, but most people talk about when they retire and what they want to do. It's as if you enter a race but never truly know if you'll make it to the finish line. How many people are lucky enough to get to retirement and have their health? Let me tell you simply from experience that once you lose your health nothing else matters. Money no longer matters. And you have saved up this fortune for what??
Once you lose your health it doesn't matter if you have 50 million dollars because money won't buy your health back. You won't feel well enough to travel, and you surely won't care about all the "investments" you've made. All you'll want is to be well. Not sick. Healthy.
So when people question me or my hubby about all the vacations we go on, or the vehicles we purchased, it's because we are living with "rainy days" every damn day of our lives. Don't look at us and say it's "irresponsible." Really?? What I think would be irresponsible is if we continued to sit around and save for something that we will never get to experience. I feel relatively good right now. Yes, I have pain but I deal with it and I truthfully know how much worse it could be, so I'll keep my complaints to myself. To watch multiple young women, fellow metsters, pass away from this disease all within one week is the biggest reality check. So while we spend, and enjoy our lives right now, I can honestly say that we have no regrets. We have enough to pay our bills, but because we know we won't be having children we will make the most of it, and spend what many spend on their children on ourselves.
Next time you choose to be conservative with every penny you make, imagine if you died tomorrow; could you say you did everything you wanted to, or were you waiting till you made it to that magical number that we deem "retirement" age? Please nobody talk to me about retirement. I truthfully don't care. And if you do, know that I'm smiling at you but could care less about what's coming out of your mouth. In my mind I have retired, not by choice, but I like to call it medical retirement. If you have your health today, do everything and anything you want to do. Seize the moment, and frankly stop being cheap!! Enjoy every day of your life. Remember, nobody promised you tomorrow. If your tomorrow involved a doctor telling you, "you have incurable cancer," I can guarantee you that your retirement plan will be the last thing you care to think about. Therefore, the next time you wonder if you can afford to buy those cute shoes, or afford to go on vacation remember these five words: what are you saving for??
Obviously, if I would have been one of the many women in this world who would have been lucky enough to have children then my perspective may be different on this. However, I'm not so I won't delve further into it. My hubby and I decided that we would enjoy every minute doing the things we love, and buying whatever makes us happy. What has always fascinated me is when people talk about saving for retirement. I can't do this or I can't do that because they're "saving." Saving for what exactly is what I ask?? We accumulate our wealth through the years, but most people talk about when they retire and what they want to do. It's as if you enter a race but never truly know if you'll make it to the finish line. How many people are lucky enough to get to retirement and have their health? Let me tell you simply from experience that once you lose your health nothing else matters. Money no longer matters. And you have saved up this fortune for what??
Once you lose your health it doesn't matter if you have 50 million dollars because money won't buy your health back. You won't feel well enough to travel, and you surely won't care about all the "investments" you've made. All you'll want is to be well. Not sick. Healthy.
So when people question me or my hubby about all the vacations we go on, or the vehicles we purchased, it's because we are living with "rainy days" every damn day of our lives. Don't look at us and say it's "irresponsible." Really?? What I think would be irresponsible is if we continued to sit around and save for something that we will never get to experience. I feel relatively good right now. Yes, I have pain but I deal with it and I truthfully know how much worse it could be, so I'll keep my complaints to myself. To watch multiple young women, fellow metsters, pass away from this disease all within one week is the biggest reality check. So while we spend, and enjoy our lives right now, I can honestly say that we have no regrets. We have enough to pay our bills, but because we know we won't be having children we will make the most of it, and spend what many spend on their children on ourselves.
Next time you choose to be conservative with every penny you make, imagine if you died tomorrow; could you say you did everything you wanted to, or were you waiting till you made it to that magical number that we deem "retirement" age? Please nobody talk to me about retirement. I truthfully don't care. And if you do, know that I'm smiling at you but could care less about what's coming out of your mouth. In my mind I have retired, not by choice, but I like to call it medical retirement. If you have your health today, do everything and anything you want to do. Seize the moment, and frankly stop being cheap!! Enjoy every day of your life. Remember, nobody promised you tomorrow. If your tomorrow involved a doctor telling you, "you have incurable cancer," I can guarantee you that your retirement plan will be the last thing you care to think about. Therefore, the next time you wonder if you can afford to buy those cute shoes, or afford to go on vacation remember these five words: what are you saving for??
I agree with you completely. You need to enjoy the present day and the future will take care of itself...and if it doesn't...oh well. I went through a divorce and got a settlement at age 65. I have been spending a little here and there but mostly saving for my old age. Well, old age is here. I got breast cancer a year and a half ago. I decided this summer I am going to the beach and getting the room I want at a hotel right on the beach, so I can sit on the deck and watch the waves. I've never spent $400 a night for a room in my life, but I am doing it!!
ReplyDeleteGinger I am so very sorry to hear you have cancer, but I am so happy to hear that you are staying at a hotel on the beach, and doing something you always wanted to do!! I love the ocean too, and simply hearing the ocean waves leaves me calm and in a place of tranquility:). I hope you have an amazing time, and always remember; you are worth every penny so enjoy;).
DeleteThanks, Judit. I am going back through your older posts and reading ones I missed. Sorry I didn't see your response back to me. I still have the beach trip planned (Laguna Beach in California) especially now that I just lost my second brother. Both of them gone in less than 5 months. Weird that they both had to have bypass surgery and died from complications from it.
DeleteOh Ginger I am so beyond sorry to hear about both of your brothers. That's simply devastating, and I feel as though losing people close to me that I love would be much more devastating than dealing with cancer. Sending you hugs. I hope you have an absolutely amazing time in Laguna Beach.
DeleteWe call it the Yolo effect and we kicked it off as soon as we found my lung nodules. People can judge all they want. I have a retirement account I may divest if I need to my fun. Hehe. Good for you!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Mandi and I hope you tap into your retirement account too!! Best decision I've made thus far;)
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