Honestly, I’m scared. What I hear from the “experts” on television is that no one knows how bad times will get before they get better. Any ideas about how to weather the economic storm?

February 22, 2011 in The Economy

Honestly, I'm scared. What I hear from the "experts" on television is that no one knows how bad times will get before they get better. Any ideas about how to weather the economic storm?

Many years ago I had a conversation with a Jewish woman whose father died in Germany during World War II. Her mother managed to survive long enough for liberation armies to rescue her from the Nazi death camps. This brave woman passed on a lesson to her daughter that was far more precious than gold. When asked about how she and others like her had been able to survive day by day, the wise woman told her daughter that her captors couldn't really take away her freedom. They could imprison her, make her work, deprive her of food and debase her in a hundred different ways. But, ultimately, once she accepted the injustice of it all, she had the freedom to decide how she could live within the limits they set for her. Her world had become four walls of cement block and barbed wire, but she still made choices. She could decide not to become bitter and resentful. She could lavish love on her fellow prisoners. She could make wishes on the first star she saw every night. She could dream big dreams. Even in her limited existence, she could re-invent herself.

I share this story not to suggest that what we are experiencing was even remotely like her situation. I just want to illustrate the absolute inevitability of human freedom. There is always something in life that we can decide to control ourselves, even if it's only the choice we make not to become bitter, not to become angry, or not to give in to despair. It may not seem like much freedom. But it is freedom.

Hang in there. Keep positive. Follow the re-invention rules you'll find on our home page. We'll get through this, and we'll be better than ever. The best is always yet to come!


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