Dear Reader:

The coronavirus has changed all our lives to a certain extent… some more than others …especially small business owners or workers laid off for lack of business and revenue.

As people look around for ways to supplement incomes…we have already seen creative ways some have responded and successfully found opportunities they would never have imagined…if not forced into an “alien” situation.

I have always felt intimidated by finances…and find myself squirreling as much money as I can away for  “rainy days.” However now…at the age I am…I  realize my knowledge and intuition is as good, if not better, than others whom I always felt intimidated by…because of their higher financial status.

I have finally grasped that my passion lies in writing and storytelling but my personality lies in PR skills…I love people and am very open to suggestions and ideas from those in “the know” at banking institutions.

By following some great advice and guidelines (along the way) I have been able to keep things afloat for many many years…which makes me proud. Life time learning is all about taking information from good teachers and mentors while putting your unique twist on it.

It wasn’t until the other day that I realized I had a connection with the miller’s daughter…turned queen… in the fairy tale classic….Rumpelstiltskin!

***This tale is a good one about believing in yourself while teaching a great economic lesson along the way. (Think about this as you read the synopsis. )

Take the fairy tale about the miller’s daughter who found herself in a tight spot because her ‘old man’ liked to brag too much about her special abilities when he had too much to drink. He must have been on a real “binger” to come up with the idea that his daughter could spin gold out of straw (which is what he told the king.)

The white knight who shows up to save the day is actually a wizardly-looking droll-like creature, who demands payment for his special talent (spinning straw into real gold)…the first time it is a necklace, the second a ring, but by the third night the miller’s daughter has run out of payment options and in desperation agrees to turn over her first-born child to the strange little man.

Soon after the birth of her first child the strange man returns for the child as promised. Here was a little man who could weave straw into as much gold as he wanted and all he wanted was a child. It was only the pitiful sobbing of the (now Queen) that opened up a special clause in the contract stating she had three days to discover his name.(a type of equity extension I suppose)

Now here is where the ball lands in the other court….the Queen doesn’t have a clue what the little man’s name is… but she has great PR skills. Because of her kindness to the servants, when she confesses her terrible promise, all the loyal servants want to help their queen out of this predicament.

One faithful servant discovers the little man yelling his name out in the woods and the story ends happily for everyone ….except for the strange little man with an even stranger name called Rumpelstiltskin

Lesson learned: When the Queen had to dig down deep, using her own special ‘talents,’ she discovered that her intuitive instincts were just as good as gold and she lived happily ever after. (Excerpt from Simple Abundance-Sarah Ban Breathnach)

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So why do so many of us feel insecure about our own ‘talents’ to the extent that we feel more secure in placing our ‘talents’ in someone else’s hands…even a stranger? Don’t you think God wants us to invest in ourselves… each of His beloved, talented children?

What is it inside most of us that makes us believe other people are smarter and more talented than we are? Even if we become successful using our “talents” the old monster, insecurity, keeps raising its ugly head.

Warren Buffet has always advised others: “Invest in as much of yourself as you can…you are your own biggest asset.”

So until tomorrow…Perhaps now is the time…when some of us have more time…to identify our unique God-given talent…and then decide how we can invest our time into something to share with the world.

I have learned so much about “banking” by investing in my garden…I have received “simple abundance” – the gift that brings me such joy!

The last pansy of the season…I had to clean out the rest of the dead pansies to make way for new flowers who can tolerate the sun and heat. *I don’t have to social distance with the fairies’ picnic!

*Even Poogie seems to sense that life is short… every evening before the sun goes down…she takes a dip in the water off the pier near Walsh and Mollie’s house…Walsh says Eloise loves watching Poogie getting in her daily laps. Poogie is “investing” in her health and longevity! 🙂

I love this cover scene…if not for the God-given talents so many front-line medical personnel invest in everyday…at sacrifice to themselves and their families…this pandemic would be grim indeed…with little hope.