Excerpt from Daily Cures, Wisdom for Healthy Aging by Connie Mason Michaelis
I received an incredible legacy from my mother. I am sure many of you will resonate because my inheritance was not money. Due to a terrible travesty, at age 88, my mom was swindled out of hundreds of thousands of dollars. The perpetrator was arrested, tried, and found guilty but did no jail time. The money was gone; consequently, the restitution was $25 a month! Needless to say, that added insult to injury. The lessons learned from that incident and Mother’s mental and emotional recovery were exemplary, but obviously, there would be no financial inheritance to share.
My mom taught all of us to be strong and self-sufficient. Mom cooked, sewed, cleaned, helped on the farm, and, in general, was a workhorse. I had no idea we were poor. There was never any talk of being down and out. Mom and Dad were always moving forward with purpose. We were taught to share because there would always be someone with less. Mom was always feeding someone. After she was widowed at 50, she ran a wholesale gasoline dealership in an all-male industry. In her 70’s she drove herself to Texas for the winters and made a whole new seasonal life for ten years. Growing up, we had a no-whining policy. No matter what kind of mood you might be experiencing, you come out of your bedroom and sit at the table for family dinner. It was expected that you would do your best at school. Honesty was the policy. You would get in more trouble for lying than whatever you were lying about. The list goes on and on. So, who needs anything more as an inheritance? Even in the last years, when her misjudgment caused so much trauma, she dusted herself off emotionally and lived with dignity until the end. I only hope to give my children the same gifts!
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