At the break of dawn, I begin the day with a heartwarming routine. I walk down to the basement to wake up Jessie. After a few delightful cuddly moments, I open the door to a world bathed in early light. Jessie scampers out to face the new day and greets the dew kissed grass as she answers nature’s call. Then she hurries back in, demanding payment for her good behavior. I watch with great satisfaction as she attacks and devours her crunchy biscuit.
That morning Jessie was already up and eager to jump out of her bed. She was impatiently waiting for me. Something was up!
Dad: “Good morning, Jessie puppy!”
She heard me and started bouncing up and down.
Jessie: “Eureka! I figured it out Dad.”
Dad: “Eureka? What did you figure out Jessie?”
Jessie: “I figured out my purpose in life Dad.”
Dad: “Wow, hold on puppy. Purpose in life? Those are big words my dear! First things first. Go water the lawn and then you can tell me about your p-u-r-p-o-s-e in life.”
Here I was, well into my middle age years, and I could barely articulate my purpose in life. But my months old puppy claims she figured out her own? She’s barely six months old and already using big words!
While Jessie wrapped up her morning routine in the backyard, I poured myself a hot cup of morning coffee. All done, she was back at the door, eager to share her eureka moment. I wiped her feet, gave her a crunchy biscuit for breakfast, and we settled down for the conversation.
Dad: “What’s on your mind Jessie?”
She inched closer to me as if she wanted to sit in my lap. But, aware of the cup of hot coffee in my hand, she settled down and looked at me lovingly with her bright, big eyes.
Jessie: “You are the best Dad in the world Dad. You wake up several times in the middle of the night and take me out, patiently waiting for me in the dark, cold nights. Then you wake me up again in the morning and give me a biscuit…”
Biscuit. That’s a magic word. Anytime anyone says it, a bell rings in puppy’s tiny head and she starts drooling. That’s my cue to give her a crunchy biscuit. She trained me well!
Dad: “Here’s another biscuit. Don’t gobble it all at once, okay? Go on, tell me more…”
Jessie: “After taking care of me in the morning, you hop on your bike to exercise as you stare at a noisy box. You gently tuck me into a basket next to the bike to keep me out of trouble.”
Ah, she figured out why I put her in the basket while I sweated it out on the bike.
Jessie: “You and Mom taught me how to climb the stairs. You gave me many toys to chew on.”
Dad: “Yes, many toys to chew on so you don’t devour the furniture and get in trouble with Mom.”
Jessie: “In the evening you and Mom take me on a walk. When those big noisy beasts pass us in a hurry and scare me, Mom gently picks me up and carries me.”
Wow, Jessie was paying attention to everything! As gratifying as it was to hear her tell us all the ways we took care of her, I was eager to learn about her eureka moment.
Dad: “Yes puppy, you are our precious little one. But what brings those memories back?”
Jessie: “You and Mom took great care of me. But Dad, I didn’t know why you did all that? Why did you bring me home? I kept wondering. Why?”
Now I am curious. I did not expect this twist! Good thing it was a Sunday morning and I had time on my hands.
Dad: “Are you still wondering?”
Jessie: “When you watch that noisy box in the morning, I watch right along with you. When I started watching, I saw people were excitedly shouting ‘Gold is up again today’. One day a very loud man started jumping around in the box and kept yelling ‘You got to buy Gold now. Buy! Buy!! Buy!!! Don’t let it run away.’”
Dad: “Oh dear, that must have been Mad (Money) Cramer. He didn’t scare you, did he?”
Jessie: “At first, I was scared Dad. Then I figured he was safely locked up in the box and disappeared when you waved a magic wand at the box and pressed a button. So, no, not scared of him now. But I did learn about precious gold.”
Here’s some context to explain what was happening at that time. Jessie was born in August 2001. We adopted her a couple of days after 9/11. Everyone was scared. The stock market was even more fearful. Markets reopened for business the following Monday, two days after we brought Jessie home. When fear and uncertainty take hold, investors dump paper assets such as stocks and seek the safety of precious metals such as gold. Every day, stocks were sold off and gold was bid up. This went on long enough. The first day when markets reopened after 9/11 was the first day Jessie was watching the market drama unfold on TV. No wonder she was left with the impression that all everyone ever wanted was gold!
Hope Jessie didn’t watch a Bollywood production or two featuring beautiful women drenched in gold, igniting a deep desire in her to ape them. I’m ok with the idea of enrolling her in a dance class, but that’s as far as I can take that fantasy.
Dad: “Yes Jessie, that was a great observation. Some people love to hoard gold. But what’s that got do with you? You know gold doesn’t look good on a little puppy.” There, I had to nip that thought in the bud.
Here I was careful not to say, “Gold biscuits”. Puppy would happily devour another biscuit, but Dad’s too comfortably settled to go fetch another biscuit.
Jessie: “When you and Mom take me out for a walk, you always pick up after me. You scoop that into a bag and carefully bring it back home. Then you open that big green box in the yard and secure the bag.”
All that was true. Jessie didn’t miss any detail.
Jessie: “Dad, I noticed the more I ate, the more gold I made.”
Dad: “Gold? You are making gold?” Before I could recover from this strange twist, Jessie continued…
Jessie: “So, now I know why you brought me home Dad. I turn crunchy biscuits into gold biscuits. You dutifully secure them in your big green box. I’m happy. You are happy. That’s my purpose in life, Dad!”
I sat there in the chair for a few moments to digest what I just heard. I wondered if she had, unknown to me, picked up another superpower, satire. Was she pulling my leg? But I know she’s too simple and transparent. It isn’t satire. She truly believes it.
I couldn’t poke a hole in her line of thought. Jessie stumbled on her purpose with practical precision.
What harm comes from this mental model? Jessie stumbled upon a perfectly reasonable mental model to align with her experience. She’s happy that she found her purpose. Who am I to mess with her purpose? As long as she stays purposeful, she will eat well and lead a peaceful life of purpose. Knowing how precious gold is, she’s not going to carelessly leave deposits on neighbor’s lawns. It’s all good.
Well, let me play along.
Dad: “Jessie, I am so proud of you dear. Here, you earned another biscuit. You figured out your purpose in life. And you are helping us build wealth.”
Jessie: “Wealth? What is that, Dad? Dollars? The man in the box said gold was so many dollars more today.”
Dad: “Dollars is currency. Gold is money. It helps build wealth.”
Jessie: “Now you are using big words Dad. What do they mean?”
Dad: “Ah, they don’t matter to you puppy. You have us and a beautiful world around you. That’s all you need to be happy. But we humans built a world where all of those are very important. We can’t function without them.”
Jessie: “Now I am curious Dad. Tell me all about it.”
Dad: “Alright puppy. I’ll write about them and read them to you. They will make great bedtime stories.”
Having shared her eureka moment, Jessie scampered off into the backyard with a halo of purpose gently hovering above her head like a crown of newfound wisdom and determination.
Note: The personal finance series is here.
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