Activity is relatively slow around here this week, and it always puts me in a meditative mood. Thanksgiving is nice because it’s not quite yet the “calm before the storm” which the December holidays represent (right before tax season, as they are). This is a week when we get to gear up — and one of my favorite ways to do this is to think about the wonderful, local Southern California clients I get to serve.
And, instead of my normal IRS Problems Strategy Note today, I thought I might speak a little more personally…
Because I know that facing the demons of debt and frustration that many of our clients have faced can be pretty daunting. So how can we be thankful?
You see, some of my clients are feeling more fearful than they did a few weeks ago. Some are feeling just fine, even happy. Some are anxious over their finances (even those with much saved in the bank), and some are breathing relief in that area for the first time in a while.
The point is this: there is never a “perfect time” to pause and give thanks. Sure, it makes sense when something nice has happened in your life, but it’s just as important to do so when things look grim.
I’m reminded of how President Lincoln established Thanksgiving as a national holiday in the midst of a roiling civil war. He recognized the power of removing our eyes from that which might provoke fear and anxiety, and remembering the gifts that we might easily forget.
His entire Thanksgiving proclamation (written by his Secretary of State, William Seward) is worth taking in, or even reading aloud, but the opening is particularly powerful:
“The year that is drawing toward its close has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added …”
Personally, I’m grateful for each one of my Southern California clients. I never want to take you for granted.
I’m grateful for the trust you give us to walk with you through sensitive financial waters, and for the opportunity you provide me to pursue a vocation that brings great pleasure to me.
I’m grateful to the people around me who make it even easier to serve you, and I’m thankful to live in a nation and an age in which I can write these kinds of posts, and that we get to enjoy a relationship of true meaning, even in the midst of transactional details.
As I gather at my table this week, I will be thinking of you, of Lincoln, and of a nation of many people with many stories, but all of whom can stop to be thankful.
And finally, on a “tax note”, allow me to remind you that although we are busy as we head into the end of the year, we will always make time to help you save on taxes. Give us a call at (714) 541-4338, and let’s get your 2019 tax return set up to save you the most that is legally and ethically possible.
Warmly,
David Barnes
(714) 541-4338
Barnes Accountancy Corporation