I WANT TO BE A KID FOREVER

"I want to be a kid forever", my favorite nephew J declared. These are definitely words according to a wise six years old child.

According to the column "Hot Topic" by Lyric Wallwork Winik, in the Sunday Parade Magazine, only 20% of Americans have enough saving to survive three months of unemployment.

The article included the following questions, "What Worries You? Which of the following is your biggest worry?

The risk of unemployment.
Being able to afford a major medical emergency.
Paying off credit card debt.
Having enough for education, a home or major expense.
Saving enough for retirement.
Or finding out at the check-out counter that all your coupons expired."

Well, I made up the last statement. Every Sunday I would dutifully look through the Sunday coupons, cut out those I would be using (especially $1 off) and organize them in envelopes that marked "Household Items", "Food" and Mics. I would remember to sort through these coupons or taking them to the stores three months later. Most of the time, the coupons were expired. I cut these coupons during football games, so at least I don't feel I wasted another marble in the jar of my life. (For details about the marbles , please read my blog entry entitled, "Don't Lose Your Marble" Saturday, September 23, 2006.)

My major worries have always been being able to afford a major medical emergency or my biggest fear is being in an accident that would cause me to lose my sights or unable to function independently. The last time I was admitted into the hospital due to blood clots (Please read my entry entitled "Blood Money" Saturday, October 14, 2006), the total amount was approximately $2,500. The charges were for one overnight stay, three injections at $100 each, three blood tests, two doctor visits at 5-10 minutes each time, three meals, dinner, breakfast and lunch. Luckily the insurance company took care of 80% of the cost.

My husband and I count our blessings that we both have jobs with decent income. We paid off our mortgage a few years ago. We don't have any children, therefore, no worries about savings for college education. Besides, we always thought our childen would be smart enough to obtain scholarships and we would not have to worry about paying college tuitions.

Of course, we don't know what the future will bring. There is always the risk of being out-of-work the next day. No job is secured in this economy. We try to save for rainy days as well as for retirement. Perhaps we should learn to enjoy being a kid, appreciate simple things in life and stop worry about things that might never happen. What could we do if tomorrow the economy collasped and the country was in depression? Could we stop the company from eliminating our jobs? How would we avoid getting into an accident or having serious illness?

The world according to J, Let's be kids forever!