Knee Deep in the Hooah!

What a financial roller coaster we’re riding! Market up, market down, buy now, sell now, business is fundamentally sound, the sky is falling. I swear my neck is suffering from whiplash.

And through it all, I hear my late grandmother whispering in my ear, “I told you so!”

I’ve been mentally reviewing grandma’s shared philosophies and style of living lately. Sensing a crisis on the horizon in early 1929, Adeline withdrew her family’s savings from the bank and purchased a brand new car. Her husband, as well as six sisters and a brother, were skeptical of what they deemed a risky decision. Not long after, the crash of ’29 hit hard. Grandma’s siblings lost their savings while she proudly drove that new car! 

My grandparents did what they had to during those years, including my grandfather selling apples on a Chicago street corner for a brief time. They survived the Great Depression, but not without lasting effects.  As a result of those tough years, grandma preached saving for a rainy day, don’t trust your money to banks or the stock market, (she stored hers in a mattress and various other hiding places!), live below your means, a depression could always hit this country again in the future, and family is more important than material goods. Our beloved matriarch left this earth at 93 years young. Up until a week prior to that day, this depression era survivor continued unscrewing light bulbs from their sockets nightly before retiring believing it saved a few pennies.

A widow living only on Social Security for several decades, she somehow managed setting aside a small inheritance for each grandchild. The money pales in comparison to love, strength, and lessons passed on to us all.

Our family members are average Americans. As grandma’s descendants, we’ve invested in the market, utilized our local banks, and compiled a wee bit of consumer debt. Today, each of us hear her whisper, “I told you so!” as the stock market tumbles, several banks are in disarray, and no one quite knows how this uncertainty will shake out. Honestly, I never thought I’d see anything like this in my lifetime.  Let’s hope and pray our elected politicians work together creating a workable plan and divert another Great Depression.

To all KD readers, my name is Cathy. My family lives in the great Midwest. This is my first time submitting an entry as one of Mrs. Hooah’s substitute writers.  Best to you, Claire!