Audio: Two Days Before Thanksgiving When I first heard this story from my father, the news came during the Thanksgiving meal. But according to his grandfather’s journal, the news came two days before, on Tuesday. My great-grandfather was Emil (pronounced EM-ee-ill) Folda. At this Thanksgiving, he was 52 years old, married to his second wife …
I hope I’m not interrupting, since this is a Thursday. On my walk this morning—cold with brilliant sun—I had an idea and if I wait until Sunday, it could be too late. Earlier this week, my psychologist friend asked how I was feeling about seeing my mother. I said it might be hard. It seems …
Audio: The Sins of the Parents Back when I was in the fundamentalist Christian church, I read the Bible a lot. It was a status symbol to have a bible showing signs of wear from heavy reading. Covers that fell off were replaced with a slab of thick leather. Center pages darker than the rest …
Audio: Money Isn’t the Only Secret I started work on my family tree, so it could be a tool for readers as I research the story of money in my family. I worked in Ancestry.com. My dad’s side came together quickly. Most suggested names of relatives had two or three hints about who they were. …
Audio: The ‘Indian Threat’? Because Thanksgiving was last week, and because my Diversity & Inclusion class is coming to a close, there is something on my mind. Thanksgiving? Or Takesgiving? It depends on your perspective. It depends on the story you tell yourself. If you tell yourself that Manifest Destiny is your divine right, that …
Audio: Death Benefits I set up my will so that none of the beneficiaries benefit if any of them die first. The dead person’s share doesn’t go back into the pool to be shared by those remaining. It goes to a not-for-profit. Even though I’m not talking about vast sums of money, setting it up …
Some people prefer to sit at their desk or in their cozy chair with a cup of coffee and read. Some prefer to grab earbuds, head to the grocery store or the treadmill, and listen. If you prefer to listen, my weekly reflections are available as podcast episodes, at Simplecast or wherever you get your …
Audio: You Stole From Me! “You stole from me!” I would recognize that voice and the anger if I were drugged, or asleep, or ninety-one years old. My father had called, and those were his first words. Had he meant to call someone else? “Dad?” “Don’t pretend you don’t know. You stole my money.” A …
Audio: Money is Here Now The day after I wrote last week’s post, I thought I would start going back in time, to the 1800s, to my great-grandfather. But then my brother and I talked. I had texted my brother asking how involved he wanted to be in care decisions about Mom. We traded texts …
Audio: Money Feelings I want to write about my relationship with money because writing helps me think. I want to understand this thing we have. I want peace with money. Yesterday, in the synchronous way the world continues to surprise me, someone asked, “Do you feel you can earn money but can’t keep it? Does …