It’s been a long journey to reach this election day and, if you’re like me, you’re plenty tired of the relentless politicking.

Case counts are rising around the country and winter is coming (34F overnight here in the Queen City of Charlotte).

A stimulus deal to help the folks who are scraping by seems stalled.

Markets are down (and up and down).

It’s hard to feel positive some days.

I’ve been noodling with a question I’d like to ask you.

When we take a look at 2020, it’s easy to see it as a long string of disasters, one after another.

And the last year has exacted a terrible cost. In lives cut short and dreams shattered.

But what if we look for the good stuff that happened as well?

Sometimes, it’s hard to remember the good things because they slip in quietly and often go unnoticed.

While the bad news announces itself loudly, instantly, and overwhelmingly.

What if we paused to ask: what good has come to my life because of this year?

I’ll start.

I’m grateful for the additional time spent with my wife Rita and our children. It’s so easy to get caught up in the shuffle of work, school, activities, travel, and everything else. I’m glad we had the opportunity to slow down and make each other our refuge.

I developed a new appreciation for my neighbors in SouthPark. We were all thrown together during lockdown and I’m grateful for the opportunity to have gotten to know them better (especially John in the house across the street who generously introduced me to the joys of mechanized leaf removal).

I reconnected with old astronomy and physics major friends from the University of Virginia over Zoom. We’d drifted apart over the years and I’m glad we could catch up.

I think our grand experiment in remote work is going to yield big benefits to our society.

What good things came about in your life?

Will you share them with me (chrismullis@nstarcapital.com)? I’d love to know. Hearing good news helps us all stay positive and moving forward.

Warmly,
Chris

Chris Mullis, Ph.D., CDFA® Founding Partner Financial Planning. Wealth Management. Since 2006AskNorthStar.com (704) 350-5028