Our latest news of a third little addition to our family has catapulted us into the usual thoughts and preparations that such news brings. One of the biggest adjustments we'll be making is that of purchasing a larger vehicle. Big fun, big research, big decision. We will sell our two older cars, which is a process itself, and meanwhile, we're trying to hone in on the best car choice for us.
My aunt in Texas has loaned me her Saturn Outlook for short jaunts during visits in the past, and I have absolutely fallen in love with that vehicle. Not only is it awesome, but it's also, I don't know, awesome. In my recent online wanderings to learn about current options, I've also come upon the Chevy Traverse, have since stepped inside one at a dealership, and have found it to be pretty sweet as well. Finally, there's the minivan, which everyone swears they'll never get, but that apparently lots and lots of people end up with nevertheless. We drove a Chrysler Town and Country (a minivan) on a recent trip, and it was pretty awesome, too.
All that background lays the groundwork for the rest. It's basically that silly conundrum of minivan versus no minivan. Stylewise, it wouldn't be our preference, but here's what I've found. We can get a nice one for our cash price range and very likely end up with zero car debt. That is super, to say the least. And in the end, we're told they get better gas mileage than the crossover SUVs in consideration. So along comes our dear friend and confidant Wisdom. Is there anything in us style-loving Finleys that might be tempted to go into a leeeeetle bit of debt to spring for what we think might be a "cooler" choice? Sure. And what really makes it "cooler?" I have no idea. Is it the Joneses? Whoever they are... Maybe.
But again, dear Wisdom, talk to me. My mom had a professor in college who made decent money and drove a low-style, reliable, older car. His students would ask him why he didn't get a newer car since he could surely afford it. One girl said, "You know, keeping up with the Joneses?" He looked at the group of students and said, "I am the Joneses." I absolutely love that! In effect, he was saying, "I set the standard." And presumably, if more people acted on that, they'd not only be setting a new standard for themselves but for those around them as well.
And you can take a look at the various millionaires and billionaires like Bill Gates who still live in the same $35,000 house they bought in their twenties or still drive the same reliable car they've always enjoyed. True wealth doesn't have to mean opulence, flashiness, or extravagance. I don't think those things are wrong at all, but I do find provocative the idea of understated affluence, of resource that gives influence, of simple excellence in life that doesn't look like it's trying too hard. Many folks we see who have such an appearance actually have little in the bank and are struggling to dig their way out of debt. Others are sitting on a lovely cushion that most of the world would never know is there. Now again, for the record, if it's within one's means to get whatever they want, I say go for it. And if it turns out that our preferred "style" is within our budget, we might just go for it. This process has gotten the Holy Spirit stirring in me, though, to consider all these things: motives, choices, discipline, Wisdom.
We've really been taking a chisel to our finances lately, and in some places an ax. That's what the move has been about, partially, though we've ended up with a much bigger place. I don't even know what the Joneses are doing, but if they're Average Americana, I think we'd all do well to steer clear of that pattern and start defining a new norm that espouses Wisdom and the peacable fruits that come from choosing well.
How refreshing! We are the Finleys, we'll set the standard, and we love wisdom. May we be diligent planters of seed and harvesters of the fruits, not consuming all but walking circumspectly with a perspective larger than our place and our time. We have a little generation coming after us that very much looks forward to an inheritance, after all!
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