Life is Short: Save & Spend Wisely for Those Left Behind

Do you ever ask yourself why you’re being such a stickler with your money? We save and invest money for “the future” but how do we know when that future we’ve been preparing for becomes the present?

My Grandmother’s Apartment

My kids and I paid an evening visit to my grandmother this week, just so they could spend a few hours hanging out with her.  The memory of my grandfather, who passed away last year, still fills her relatively new apartment.  She moved into the independent living community after he died and as I walked in the front door I realized how people know when “the future” has arrived.

The place she’s living is wonderful. They have a computer room, a chapel, a game room, a workout room, a movie theatre, shuttles to drive the residents around town, a great dining facility, and most importantly… a nice community.  The people that live there congregate for meals, movies, games, worship, and just to visit.

The Future is Now

Of course all of these amenities aren’t cheap but it’s okay because “the future” that my grandfather saved for all those years has arrived.  As I mentioned in my memorial to him, my grandfather was tight with money, and proud of it.  Now all that saving and investing is paying off. Providing for his wife when he’s not there to care for her is EXACTLY what that money was meant for. 

He probably couldn’t visualize exactly how the money would be spent at the time of earning and saving it but he knew he was investing in the security of his family.  He didn’t know what the future held but he knew that it would eventually come and that he wanted to be ready when it did.

Condolences

One of the reasons I wanted to write this was because of Jason over at Frugal Dad who sadly lost his mother last Sunday. My visit to my grandma and his loss of his mom really got me thinking about where my parents and someday my wife and I will end up. 

I don’t know when that future will be. I don’t know what it will look like. But I’m glad that my parents and my wife and I are saving for the day when it arrives so that we can provide the rest of our family the security that we won’t be there to give.

Ben Edwards, the founder of Money Smart Life, saved up enough to buy a Nintendo back when he was 12 years old. When he used the money to buy shares of Wal-Mart stock instead, he knew he wasn't like the other kids... His addiction to personal finance has paid off for his family and now he's helping you to afford the life that you want. Check him out on the web at Google Plus, Twitter and Facebook.

All posts by Ben Edwards