Perseverance: My mom and dad

I think about people constantly. My friends and family are always on my mind in one capacity or another. Earlier this morning, shortly after I woke up, I was remembering a Thanksgiving at my sister in law, Sharon's house. I was just thinking about us all in the kitchen cooking together. No big deal, nothing significant, but I often think about things like this. When I am waiting for my kids at school or the bus stop, I am always thinking about someone. I don't know why. It's just somewhere my mind always goes.

After another successful business month, I have been reflecting on how I got here. I never considered myself very skilled in business nor did I consider myself to even have a desire to do anything with business. I've always been more of an artsy person. but circumstances set in and I stepped up. I found a strength I didn't know I had.

So I've been wondering how that became a strength of mine. And I realized it was because of the example of my mother and father.

When circumstances made it so my mom had to work, she picked up jobs through ASU embroidering ASU on T-shirts and draw string bags. She was very good at it and they always looked very professional. I can still remember going with her t the ASU store and dropping off the items. She did what it took to make ends meet.

And then there' dad. ha! I have so many funny stories about my dad and business that I think of often now when I reflect on my business.

My dad never had cash. If we needed or wanted money to go somewhere or do something dad always said, "I don't have money for that." That's because the second he had disposable income he'd put it into an investment. When I got married, my grandfather gave me a $100 gift card to Costco. But we don't have Costco here in Virginia where I am located. My dad wanted to buy it off me for his use, but didn't have any cash. So he traded me 20 oz of silver for my Costco gift card. hahaha. This story cracks me up to this day!

The other story that I love telling about my dad is one from my youth. I went on a choir trip and I needed a duffle bag. My dad told me my brother, Neal, had his duffle bag. So I asked Neal for the bag and there was a heavy brick in it. I asked Neal why there was a brick in it. He said, "I don't know. Use it as a door stop." I set it in my closet thinking I might start using it as a door stop! I had been returned from my trip for several days when my dad came into my room in a panic and his face sweaty. He said, "There was something in the duffle bag that Neal gave you. Was it still in there when he gave you the duffle bag?" Having been sitting on the floor in my room doing homework, I was in easy reach of my closet. I took out the brick and said, "This thing?" Looking at the relief on my dad's face at the sight of the brick, I knew it wasn't just any old brick. He explained that he had invested in gold and used that duffle bag to transport his bricks of gold. That thing was heavy too. I probably had many thousands of dollars in gold sitting in my closet for a week or so. Good thing I didn't take it on my trip! That's my dad, leaving bricks of gold around the house! He's very smart with money and his investments.

So anyway, my point is that I am so grateful to both my parents for being smart and for teaching us to not just survive, but to thrive! To excel in everything! To do everything the best we can and then enjoy the rewards of our hard work and efforts. I especially learned perseverance from my mother as I watched her often sew those little tiny letters on shirts day in and day out. They didn't ask anyone for money or help. They just did what they had to do. And it paid off in the end in bricks of gold :) ha!