Quality Control

I had a very interesting conversation with someone who recently lost their job. We had a very candid conversation about everything from the difficult job market to family values. He was asking me questions about Jaocb's decision to find work again and what that might look like.

It is amazing how much money you can really live on when you decide that quality of life matters most. (I realize however that everyone's definition of quality is different.) We don't go out

to movies anymore and as a matter of fact- we just cancelled our Netflix account too. (An extra $20 a month for groceries) We don't eat out unless it's a church-sponsored event. We drive two ten-year old, paid off cars. We don't frequent Broadway shows and rarely go to concerts or conventions. We don't subscribe to the New York Times or have a membership to any country club or yacht club. We don't travel to exotic places for vacations or drink Starbucks four times a week.

But what we do invest in is life. We love weekly strolls along the boardwalk at Jones Beach. Life-giving conversation and companionship is completely free. We enjoy cooking dinner together each night with the sounds of "Jeopardy" in the background. We go on long walks through our neighborhood -for it's one of the most beautiful places in the spring. The highlight of the night is bath time and the 4th reading of "Goodnight Moon" for our 9 month old. We love waking up to Aaron's laugh and the smell of freshly brewed coffee and bacon. I love that I come home for lunch every day and that I get to feed and rock my son to sleep before I go back. I love that we see each other at every meal and that we are teaching Aaron the blessing, "God is Great, God is Good...".

We may not have the same quality of life as a lot of people. And according to the rest of the world, we are incredibly rich. And that's just how we see it. Yes, the economy is in terrible shape. Yes, we don't have much retirement, savings, or stock. But, what we do have is priceless. You can't put a price tag on memories. You can't put a value on togetherness.

So today- in this economic climate-I choose to say, and with conviction, we are rich...filthy rich!!

Love- The Burgess Bunch