THE CELTIC CONNECTION » OCTOBER 1995
Page 11
MONEY
Don't Limit Your Creativity
By ROBERT HENDERSON
Thomas Aquinas, the Thirteenth Century theologian, laid out in clear words how deep the issues of work are to the human species. Work touches life itself — "to live well is to work well." Good living and good working go together.
I believe that our work is meant to be beautiful and creative, to increase the beauty of the world, of one another and of the worker. Work is not just about getting paid. A great deal of our work is not paid, ie. raising children, cooking a meal, gardening and visiting friends in hospital.
We don't live just to work so we can save money and one day become indolent — we "live in order to live," as Meister Eckhart put it. We ought not to postpone living because of work or because of our plans to buy something with the money we make. Making a living and having a financial plan to take care of our dependents is part of life.
The ultimate gift that adults pass on to the young, after all is said and done, is a sense of values. The primary value in life is living life fully. We want to be happy and why not?
Unfortunately, work is seen by many as a "disturbance," a disruption in our goal of achieving indolence. That is why choosing our work is of such importance.
Despite promises that technology ana automation would shorten our work week, nearly every study suggests that in North America, we're actually working more hours now than a decade ago, and earning less real income.
Surveys reveal that the average
we really • playing
American has only 16.5 hours of leisure time each week {Psychology Today). It seems then that when we are "at play," we should be doing something enjoy. Working o_ should both be enjoyable.
If living were something money could buy, says the old song, the rich would live and the poor would die. The reality is that the rich do in fact live, and the poor do indeed die at sharply unequal rates.
A recent study by the prestigious Canadian Institute for Advanced Research came to the startling conclusion that what most influences health is a work situation where people feel in control of their lives. The wealthy, or people with savings, are more in control of their lives and work. In any event, wealthier is healthier — the statistics are irrefutable.
There seems to be a malaise in North America today that the young have no jobs, the population is exploding and that the future for the earth is bleak. Many religions view the world now as "doomsday" approaches. This is due in part to the end of the millennium — but remember that the earth doesn't know how old it is!
The frontier lies in the future, and creative success binds people welcome the future just as they welcome change gener-
ally. We have been led to believe that there are no new frontiers and everything has already been invented.
Nothing could be further from the truth. Every day new fields develop or grow more sophisticated, which means increased opportunities. The catch is that one must be willing to work hard, to dream and to take risks; we must be prepared to confront challenges, both private and professional.
If we look to the future as a vast, exciting and still unexplored territory, we are on our way to becoming successful people. We must learn to expect change as work, since work habits are changing rapidly and things are no longer done the way they have always been done.
The Indian mystic Kabir says, "I laugh when I hear that the fish in the water is thirsty." So it is with our work, our civilization has settled for such a narrow and restrictive definition of work. Matthew Fox says, "There is no unemployment in the universe — except of course, where humans mesmerized by machinery have shut down our potential for real work in our communities. Think of it: no galaxy is out of work, no ocean, no star, no atom, no porpoise, no tree, no blade of grass."
Who dares settle for less, and allow a world view to close down our creativity?
ROBERT HENDERSON is a financial advisor with Vantage Securities Inc. To receive his complimentary bi-monthly newsletter filled with tax and investment ideas please call Christina Richards (604) 683-5802.
Rapist and Murderer Convicted
CALGARY — Jeffrey Thurston (21) has been convicted of the rape and murder of Eileen McCoy (46). He must serve at least 25 years before becoming eligible for parole.
The county Wexford woman emigranted to the small town of Taber, Alberta, with her husband and children in 1989, where they owned and managed a small store. McCoy was abducted at gun-
Eoint before being raped and shot in the head. After the murder, er husband returned to Ireland with his family. He returned to Alberta recently to give evidence at the trial. — The Irish Emigrant
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