Having Everything but Money; or having Nothing Except Money

With all of the news of bank crashes, crazy oil prices and bailouts, I've been thinking much about the Great Depression. Mom and Dad used to tell me stories about what times were like back then. I wish they had written those stories down. Yesterday I stopped by the library and checked out several books on the subject. My favorite is titled, "When the Banks Closed, We Opened Our Hearts." The subtitle really says it all... 'More Heartfelt Memories of the Great Depression...from folks who recall the days when we had everything except money.' The book gives first - hand accounts of folks who lost everything. Many children had to be sent to orphanages because their parents couldn't afford to feed them; 'Okies' followed Route 66 to California after losing their homes and farms in the Dust Bowl. But this book is not depressing. It is inspiring. People helped each other. They took each other in and shared what they had. And they were grateful for what they had. If these resilient folks, as they put it, had everything except money, could this generation be labelled as those who have nothing but money? Maybe we're being given a golden opportunity right now, to take an inventory of the things we have that are not monetary. And if we are coming up short, it might be time to invest in the things that really matter.

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