P is for Priorities

One afternoon this winter, I was soaking in my hot tub with my finance's niece and nephew. At the time they had been living in Montana less than six months, after spending all of their lives growing up in Boston. As the eight year old girl bobbed around amid the jets, she surveyed our back yard and sighed "Wow, this is nice. It's like you guys are rich." I didn't want her to perpetuate that misconception. I realize she isn't used to visiting people who own homes and have back yards. "Well, " I began gently, "This is called having priorities. You spend your money on the things that are most important to you. We have a hot tub but we don't have fancy cars or expensive furniture." Her 11 year old brother nodded his head enthusiastically, to indicate he was familiar with this concept. She tilted her head to the side as she tried to understand. "But you still have a really nice car!" she exclaimed. I had to admit that yes, to her and I, my 2008 Volkswagen Rabbit is a "nice car" but as far as price and luxury go, it's fairly low on the list.

It's a difficult concept to explain and I'm not sure I should expect an 8 year old to understand it when I know plenty of adults who don't! Priorities is a subjective term too. My priorities are constantly shifting and dynamic. Sure, there are a top few: spouse, self, family, work, pets, home but even those can change from day to day. And sometimes something pops up that needs to take priority for a short time, like planning a wedding, and everything else gets rearranged for a while!

The life lesson I've learned here is that it's important to re-evaluate your priorities from time to time. AND, it's okay to have some on your list that are unique to you, like our hot tub! I don't believe there's one thing that should always be the number one priority in life. Not every single second of every day. Any one who thinks otherwise is not realistic.

So take some time to look at your priorities and make sure you're on the list!

Mimosas in the hot tub