Wealth

So, this past week was fairly interesting and I even remembered to bring my camera along a couple of times. I need to just get in the habit of taking the camera with me when I go and getting it out when people come over. That way I'll catch anything “different” on “film”. In truth, we're mainly creatures of habit. Wherever we end up we crawl into a habit as quickly as we can. Once we've done that we travel very happily in the same little circles day after day. So, although there's often something to talk about there's not always all that much to see. I can't wait until we get property of our own. Then I'll be able to get back in the habit of walking and I can take the camera with me when I go.

Either way, all that has little to do with what we did this week. We started off by going over to Mom and Dad Yates to do a little yard cleanup. There is still a lot of tree work to be done around here. The ice storm really did a lot of tree damage. Here are a few photos:


My work on Worlds of Magic went very well this week. Space Sector (a big gaming website) did an interview with Leszek and I. They liked our answers so much that they decided to break it into two parts. That will probably mean more media attention, which is a good thing for us.

In other news, my book got rejected by yet another publisher. I wish I could find one that was interested, but the fact is that it's not a big deal. If I can't find a publisher before the end of the year I'll probably just publish it myself. I'm slowly getting my name out there as a game developer. That alone may allow me to sell a thousand books or so. That may not be much, but at least it would give me some “street cred” as a writer, lol.

We wrapped up the week much like we had started it by doing some chainsaw work at Ms. Pat's house. (Ms. Pat is Sam McDowell's mother and practically my second Mom.) She had a big pine tree she needed removed as well as some the other pine limbs cleaned up. Part of it was a result of the ice storm. Sam couldn't make it, but Becky (his wife) and the kids came. After we were done working we got to eat and have a bit of a hangout. It was very nice. I just wish Sam could have been there as well.

Here are some pictures:


One other bit of news: Rachel and I have been married for 17 years as of today (I'm writing this on Sunday). It's amazing how fast time flies when you're having fun, lol. I'm very blessed because if I had to do it all over again I would without question. I'm very happy with my choice :)

So, now we can get to the part of the post where I wax philosophical. Why am I bothering to post all this when I'm almost certain no one's reading it? Well, there are a number of reasons. For one thing, writing out my thoughts helps me organize them. So, putting what I'm thinking about “down on paper” helps me make progress in my train of thought. Also, I figure it will be interesting reading for me in time. And you never know, someone somewhere may read this at some time and think “Hey! That guy's right!” That will make it worth the effort. My Grandmother used to say “It's better to light one candle than to curse the darkness!” and I think she was right :)

Anyways, Wealth, what is it? This may seem like a very basic concept that isn't even worth discussing, but such is not the case. A foundation is a very simple thing. It's just a level, solid base on which a building can be built. But simple or not it's essential to the process. When discussing business, financial responsibility, and, above all, wealth creation, it's important to understand just what wealth is. That's why I'm taking the time to post about it.

It's not surprising that wealth starts with necessity. If we don't have the basic things we need for survival there can be no wealth. This concept is easy to understand. If you were lost in the desert (and had any sense) you would rather have four gallons of water than 33.36 pounds of gold (water weighs 8.34 pounds per gallon). No amount of gold will keep you from thirsting to death. Nor will it keep you from starving or freezing or prevent you from dying in any number of other ways. So, gold is only valuable after you have something to drink, something to eat, are warm enough to survive, are safe from marauders, etc, etc, etc. This is important to understand, because most people relate gold to wealth. Well, it's part of it, but it's not were wealth begins.

After our necessities have been met we can begin to pursue higher tiers of wealth. What's the next rung on the ladder? That's an important question that more people need to ask more often. Most people seem to start pursuing wealth before they even know what it is or what qualities it has. For one thing, wealth is personal. Your wealth is what makes you, as an individual, happy. For instance, my wife, our seven children, our almost adopted son (and our nephews), are all part of my personal wealth. I would rather have them than a Corvette for instance. That's easy for me to prove because I could have easily paid for a Corvette with the money I've spent on my children, lol.

This is an area where many people start off on the wrong foot from the very beginning. You'll often see people loaded with worldly possessions who wish they had a spouse, or children, or more time to spend with one or the other or both. Then you'll see people who started having children before they even got out of high-school who seem very unsatisfied with their lives and wish they had money rather than children. (I can't understand that one myself, I just know that it's sometimes the case.) These people set out to get something without considering the ramifications of their actions. In my opinion they should have spent more time considering what they really wanted out of life. They should have decided what wealth was before they went out to get it. Knowing what you want out of life is the first step to getting it.

Rachel and I knew we wanted a lot of children. We wanted a home life where we would able to be together and live together as a family all the time. As a result we worked toward that. Rachel never went out and got a job because we wanted her to be home with the children once we started having them (although she did have a little part time work fall in her lap when we first got married). We didn't get a truck or a bass boat. In stead, she stayed home keeping up with the house and taking care of what little work there was to do. Then we had Ben and she had more work. Then Libby came along and there was even more to do. Child after child arrived. We had more work to do, less money, and a whole lot more wealth. I knew I didn't want a bass boat as much as I wanted a load of children. I set out to get what I wanted. The Lord blessed me and I did.

At the moment we're under a serious financial strain. However, we are still very, very wealthy and we understand that. We are much happier in this situation than we would be in a giant house with seven new cars (one for every day of the week) and no children. We knew where our wealth began and we set out to get it. There are certainly other things we want and we are working to get them, but at the end of the day, real wealth amounts to happiness and that comes from the Lord. If people understood that the world would be a richer place.

Of course, that having been said, we still need to work toward the goals we want to reach. It's not enough to simply say “The Lord will take care of it.” and do nothing. As it says in James 2:18 “Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” I believe that the Lord is taking care of me and is going to lead me to happiness. I prove that by trying to pick the right direction and head toward the right goal. If you want to be wealthy (read happy) you need to decide what wealth is to you.

I plan to talk about other elements (or tiers if you will) of wealth soon, but this has run long enough for the moment. Expect more from me next week. For now, goodnight from South Carolina!