“Magnificent Seven”

 

Count your blessings has long been a statement that encourages gratitude.

While camping a few weeks ago I was pondering just how interesting life has been up to this point. Then I thought, what if I could go back and enjoy any seven days of my life again, which days would I choose? I started reminiscing about times, places, people and situations. There can only be seven…which makes for careful consideration.

I decided to clearly define what I meant by going back to live these days again. The rule was that NOTHING could change, it was only being able to live those moments exactly as they were over again that was allowed. (This eliminated the choice of days where changing something about the day would have changed your life in some dramatic way). With that rule in place, the choices were simplified.

Let me share about the seven days I chose. (Chronologically ordered).

1. Traditional Christmas Eve with family at my Grandpa Nick Foglietta’s home: Every Christmas Eve our family on my father’s side gathered at Grandpa Nick’s home on Mill Street in Nanaimo to enjoy a traditional spaghetti and meatball meal.  So many of the people who gathered there are gone now…would love to sit and listen to them all banter (loudly of course…we are Italian) one more time!
2. A summer day with my maternal grandparents on our family farm: There were many of these days and any one of them would do. I’d love to see life as I saw it then and spend those precious moments with two people I loved so much.
3. Camping with our nuclear family and friends at Deep Bay: This was another regular trip that combined camping and fishing with dear friends. The setting was idyllic and the fishing incredible.
4. Playing game 7 in Penticton for the BC Hockey League championship: We lost this game but the intensity of that day was unforgettable. I can only imagine what it must be like for something like the Stanley Cup or the Super Bowl?
5. Wedding Day: Our wedding day was a bit of a finish line. Genevieve (my wife) was planning the details of the wedding as well as trying to organize furniture for our new home (as cheaply as possible) since we were tight on finances. My job was getting the house build done so it would be ready to move into after our honeymoon while working the long hours of a rookie investment advisor. It was literally down to the last day on the house being ready to move into. On the morning of our wedding day I felt a tremendous sense of relief that the house was ready and the excitement to start this new journey in life with my soon to be bride.
6. Spending summers at Lake Cowichan at our summer home: There were hundreds of idyllic days to choose from here. We purchased our summer home in 1997 and it was the center of our summers for our family for 14 years while our kids were young. Good memories with family and friends doing all the usual summer activities one does at a lake front cottage. Just one of those days enjoyed at that time of life would be a treat to experience one more time!
7. Disneyland with my brother’s family: The best part of this memory was the ages of the kids. The oldest was 13 and the youngest was 9. The “magic kingdom” is truly meant for making these types of memories.

There are so many more days that were memorable. Great trips in different spots around the world, good times with friends and family or just exciting events. The days chosen on my list are there because they are family memories. Shared with people I love and care about. It is the people who make life worth living…not so much what we actually did together.

Many are the people above no longer here and I miss them. But those memories really never fade.

So what made me write about the “magnificent seven” in a financial blog?

This summer has seen my blog submissions focused on “educational topics.” It is time to wrap up these themed editorials and move back towards more financial market oriented comments.

The quieter summer months often sees me having longer conversations with clients that cover a lot more range of topics.

Honestly, I sense people are a little worn out from the past nearly 3 years.

Therefore, this concluding editorial hopefully nudges you to consider your magnificent seven. Hopefully you are encouraged when you think about some of your awesome days! I felt grateful just writing this submission!