O•S•C•A•R© - Old Ottawa South

Page 40 The OSCAR - OUR 40 th YEAR MAY 2012
Sips from the Poetry Café
My Mom Knows Things!
By: Susan Atkinson
As May approaches there’s lots to
celebrate and lots to be grateful
for. The tulips are popping up, spring
My Mom Knows
Things!
My mom knows when I wear
Socks three days in a row.
And she knows when I play
Without gloves in the snow.
She knows in the morning
When I’m in a rush
I don’t put toothpaste
On my brush.
She knows when I don’t
Wash my face at night.
And she knows when I
Read using only a flashlight.
She knows when my coat
Isn’t done up right
And my laces are knotted
Instead of tied tight.
You may, on occasion,
ask yourself why you
are investing. Why go
is in full swing and Mother’s Day is
just around the corner. For most of
us it really is a time to thank all the
mothers in our lives and to perhaps
remember those who are no longer with
She knows when I’m supposed
To be cleaning my room
I push everything under
The bed with a broom.
She knows when I have
My feet on the couch,
Or my elbows on the table
When I slouch.
She knows when I don’t
Finish my drink
It ends up poured
Down the kitchen sink.
She knows when I don’t
Eat the greens on my plate,
And She knows if I dawdle
We’re bound to be late.
She knows when I haven’t
Combed my hair
Or have done my homework
Without extra care.
She knows when I feed
The dog left over food
And she knows when I’m
mean,
Unkind or rude.
She knows without looking
If I stick out my tongue
Or pull a face
Or do something wrong.
But best of all
My mom always knows
how to help with
my highs and lows.
She knows when to cheer
If I’ve done well
And when to listen
If there’s stuff to tell.
through the fluctuations of the financial
markets, the worry over interest
rate movements, the fears of today
us. I think when we do stop and ponder
the wonderful women in our lives we
marvel at the gift of knowledge they
possess. To me it always seemed that
my mom knew everything and I mean
She knows when I’ve had
A really bad day,
She knows what to do
And just what to say.
She knows if I’m nervous
About something at school.
She knows what’s hip,
What’s in, what’s cool!
She knows what it takes
To make me smile
And she knows I have
My very own style.
She knows how to soothe
And take tears away.
She knows how to teach
And how to play.
She knows the words
To my favourite song.
For Whom Are You Investing?
and the uncertainties of tomorrow?
To answer this question, you may
need to ask yourself one more: For
whom am I investing?
Consider the following:
• You’re investing for yourself. It
sounds selfish, but it’s not. You may
be investing in your Registered
Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) and
other investment accounts so you
can enjoy a comfortable retirement
lifestyle after working your entire
adult life. But you’re also investing
so you can become financially
independent — free of worries that
you’ll become a burden to your grown
children or other family members. And
given the real possibility of spending
two, or even three decades in an
active retirement, it’s imperative that
you put as much as you can possibly
afford into investment vehicles that
can help you pursue your financial
independence.
• You’re investing for your family. If
you have children or grandchildren,
you may well want to help them pay
for college or university. And, as you
know, post-secondary education has
gotten much more expensive in recent
years, so you’ll need to save and
invest from the time your children are
very young, and you’ll need to choose
the right investment accounts. But
you’ll also need to think about other
family members, too. Have you built
up enough in your retirement accounts
so that the money would be sufficient
to support your surviving spouse
should anything happen to you? Will
you have enough financial resources
to help support your elderly parents
everything – like she really did have
those ‘proverbial’ eyes in the back of
the head! This month I thought it would
be fun to honour that gift with a piece
written from a child’s perspective.
She knows how to help
When things seem wrong.
She knows how to cuddle
If I wake at night,
She knows how to put
A bad dream right.
My mom even knows
my favorite food,
my favourite colour
and my favourite mood.
My mom she knows
Everything you know:
She knows how to support
And give love just so.
To all the moms in the world –
and you know who you are! –
Happy, happy Mother’s Day.
should they require assistance? And
will you be able to leave the type of
legacy you desire? As you can see,
when you’re investing for your family,
you’ve got a lot to consider
.
• You’re investing for your beliefs.
Throughout your working years, you
may try to give as much money as
you can to charitable organizations
whose work you support. Yet you
may wish you could do even more.
And eventually, you may be able to
do more. For example, if you sell an
asset that has appreciated in value,
there will be tax implications. But if
you were to give securities that have
appreciated in value to a charitable
organization, you could avoid taxes
on the appreciated amount, and you
may even get a current income tax
break for your contribution. You
might also want to include charitable
organizations in your estate plans,
after consulting with your attorney or
other estate tax advisor.
As you can see, you’ve got some
“key constituencies” counting on
you. By keeping them in mind, you
should have the motivation you need
to overlook the day-to-day ups and
downs of investing — while you
keep your focus on your important
long-term goals. If you would like
assistance in formulating how to
achieve these goals, please give me a
call at 613-526-3030.
Bob Jamieson, CFP
Edward Jones, Member Canadian
Investor Protection Fund.