What I’m Grateful For
Last month I turned 65 and on Thanksgiving Day, in the warmth of my home snuggled with my chihuahuas as I wrote this column, I am reflected on what I’m grateful for.
To start with, I’m grateful for my health and, as a newly minted elder, I’m excited for Medicare!
I’m thankful to make my home between the Sangres and the Jemez mountains, living within northern New Mexico communities whose relationship to this land goes back over a thousand years.
I’m grateful to work in the rich cultural mix of Santa Fe, with some of the best restaurants, bookstores, coffee roasters and wine shops in the country, strong spiritual communities of every faith, and where, walking from my office to our beautiful Plaza any day of the week, I hear the music of multiple languages being spoken.
I appreciate that I get to live in a state that is committed to progressive public policies, to nurturing the arts, and to protecting individual rights and the environment.
I’m grateful that at the age of 65 I’m still passionate about my job, and–if I live as well as my 93 year old dad–that I could have one third of my life ahead of me to keep working, growing, and learning.
I owe a debt of gratitude to my partners, co-workers, and clients who helped me build LongView Asset Management, our mission-driven company focused on sustainable investing. And to my wife Sydney who never gives up reminding me that money can be a force for good. I’m grateful for having found purpose in helping our clients steer away from companies whose products hurt people or the planet, while using our power as shareholders to hold corporations to a higher standard of care.
I’m fortunate to have found meaning in spiritual practice, community service, and family. And unlike the previous three generations of my lineage who were separated from each other by oceans, I get to live on the same continent as my grown children!
I’m privileged to live in a town with a world class daily newspaper that punches above its weight and is kind enough to offer me and my daughter Leah a monthly forum to share our thoughts.
I’m thankful for the abundance in my life. And I’ve realized that for me, the measure of a person’s wealth is how much they are able to give. In Jewish tradition, the opportunity to give is considered a “mitzvah”–a blessing. Generosity can take many forms: time, attention, care, work, money, mentorship, or bearing witness to each other.
As I enter my sixty-sixth year, I am also keenly aware that so much of what I’m grateful for —personal freedom, economic opportunity, and the bounty and grace of nature—is not a given for the next generation. We elders must do what we can to support them in facing the political and environmental challenges they will inherit. My hope is that we can live up to what the moment asks of us.
This material is intended for education purposes only. LongView Asset Management, LLC (referred to as "LongView") does not warrant that the provided information will be free from error. None of the information provided is intended as investment, tax, accounting or legal advice, as an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or as an endorsement of any company, security, fund, or other securities or non-securities offering. This information should not be relied upon for transacting securities or other investments. Under no circumstances shall LongView be liable for any direct, indirect, special or consequential damages that result from the use of, or the inability to use, the materials provided. In no event shall LongView Asset Management, LLC have any liability to you for damages, losses, and causes of action for accessing this commentary. Past performance is not indicative of future results. This content not reviewed by FINRA. Photo by Megan Watson on Unsplash.