Finance with Don Fraser Fraser Farm Finance

I have changed my writing style to that of an old fart!

If any of you think I am repeating myself, I am, and that’s okay because we need to read or hear something about five times before there is any shift in our ‘bean-can’, and I can’t remember what I wrote about last time anyway.

At my tender age of nearly 75, people are dropping like flies with illness, bad health, not to mention death. Yes, I mean dying – not moving, leaving this planet. No matter how you see it, we are all going to die sooner or later.

How many summers do we have is a calculation we all need to make. My dad, his brother and their father lived to about 85, all not well for that last 10 years of their life.

So, given that I will be about the same I have 10 years, or only 10 good summers to live.

Frightening? No!

No, because I have been embracing my longevity for some time now – I have the pedal to the metal and am doing heaps of things. Heaps. And so, should you, if you can.

Embracing mortality

Have a realistic think about how long you expect to live and then work backwards to the present and just see how few summers you have left.

I stood by my brother at the funeral of our last uncle and said: “we are next pal!”

It was a turning point moment.

If things are not working out for you, or you feel you need to make improvements, embrace, and make the changes that are necessary.

Do not be a miserable old sod and hang onto everything until you are too old to change and too old to embrace a difference and better life. And you probably will not remember anyway when you make the changes.

A friend of ours was a rural realtor and regularly regaled stories of stupid old farts who had refused to sell up while they were able only to find it was all too late when they did.

Listen up

I need to say I get a bit grumpy these days with old farts who are hanging onto everything, staying on the land, and depriving their long-suffering wives of the opportunity to have a life-style change.

And while I am at it, if you are hard of hearing, go and get a hearing check and, if you need hearing aids, use them.

Nothing is more annoying than some old deaf bugger who cannot hear and won’t listen either.

I know who all my deaf mates are, as they are all suborn and shout loudly. It is very annoying.

So my parting thought is in the words of the Nike ad, ‘just do it’.

Shake off those shackles of anxiety and trepidation, step over your fear and make and embrace those changes you need to make.

Just feel the fear and do it anyway.

Disclaimer: These are the opinions of Don Fraser (an old fart). Any decisions made should not be based on this article alone and appropriate professional assistance should be sought. Don Fraser is the retired Principal of Fraser Farm Finance and was a consultant to the farming industry for many years. Contact him on 021 777 675.