She was feisty, quiet, spiritual, and loving. She didnt’ believe in talking about others who were not present. At one time she stood 5′ 2″ tall. As a child she worked hard milking cows, collecting eggs from the chicken coop, mucking stalls, and then heading to the house to help her Mom with cleaning. I know, because I read her diary. Only because she let me read a page or two. Each page talked about the chores, dawn ’til dusk. Not in a bitter tone, but a conversational description of her life as a teenager growing up on the farm in a family of eight children, a Father that was a preacher, lumber man, and proprietor of a construction company. You see they lived in a small rural town in Wisconsin. It was a tough job feeding a family of ten.
There was absolutely nothing spectacular about this lady. She walked fast, whistled while she walked even when the air was so cold the snow squeaked under foot. She brought six children into the world. The last one, a girl, born at Mrs. Boltice’s house, the midwife. Her husband wasn’t very good at bringing a regular paycheck into the house, so she had to cook, clean, shop, attend school functions, and make money, too. She didn’t complain. Each day, as she came back from cleaning someone’s house, she went to the desk, took out a black journal, wrote something down beflore she closed it and placed it back in its cubby hole. Inquisitive as I was, nosey some might say, I opened up that journal to see what she was writing. It didn’t look like much. A list of things followed by a dollar amount. Ironing: $1.50, Wash and fold clothes: $1.00, House clean: $3.00, and the list went on.
This intelligent woman, my Mother, tracked each nickel that came into and went out of our home. She kept us fed, clothed, and warm. She lived a simple life with no debt. She provided my first lessons in money management. Oh, how lucky I have been.
I hope I can share some of what I’ve learned over the years, as her youngest child, as a student, teacher, investment manager, and friend. Through book reviews, commentary, and stories I will teach you about investing. But, let me share with you right up front…. writing to you is a new experience and likely a real reach for me. So, if you will be patient, over time and with your feedback, I’ll get better. Atleast, that’s my plan.
