I’d like to take a moment out of this busy day to thank my two sons for a great Christmas gift: understanding and empathy.
Last year, when I started Maine Senior Guide and there was a lot more money going out in business development than was coming in for writing services, I decided to shut down my hot tub to decrease our family’s electric bill. My hot tub was an extension of my office: I read there, planned my writing and worked on proposals. I was in the tub at least once a day, far more than other family members, so it was a sad (though brave) recognition of economic reality, and one of several belt-tightening measures over the last 18 months as we launched the business.
Ben and Aaron
My sons decided that they needed to lower my stress level, so for Christmas they put the tub back together, got it filled and heated, and handed me a cash gift of the money needed to run the tub for a year. It was an incredibly generous gesture, but more than that, it was insightful and attentive. I love that they thought about how they could they help mum relax and enjoy her life and the entrepreneurial journey a little more.
They are 22 and 25, out of college, fledged into their own lives and both experimenting with jobs on the other side of the country. As I watch the winter night sparkle from the warm depths of the tub, I remember that the stars are there all the time, we just can’t always see them, and that they pass from my night’s vision to appear later in Colorado and finally in California. The stars in your sky are the stars in mine, and I love you, boys.