Keeping it real: Life is short

John thought he was safe.

He survived two big layoffs at his company. He went to work each day the past twelve months expecting the worst. However, the days turned into a string of months. He started to think that the worst was over, and he started to actually breath again. After one busy week, he even started planning a get-away for his wife and him for their sixteenth wedding anniversary.

So, it was a surprise to him when he went to work in June and found a surprise invitation to meet with his boss. His knew immediately that something was wrong and, sure enough, he was right. His company laid off close to 20% of its workforce and his position was eliminated.

Nothing is ever promised

John and I worked together in another life and he’s picking up the pieces. He had his resume ready just in case and he’ll have a severance package to count on for a few months, but he knows that it could be a long slow process. He saw myself and others that were let go by the same company pick up the pieces and move onto something else. He’s hoping for the best.

Now the sad thing is that the company is actually doing quite well, but not well enough according to the private equity firm that serves as the controlling shareholder and is reportedly planning to take the company public and would pocket an armored truck worth of money in the process.

Like I mentioned, I’ve been in John’s shoes. I’ve been laid off twice, but the shock is still a big one. It’s a reminder that you never know what life has in store, how the ball might bounce this way or that. To use another cliché, it reminds us that life is short.

Here today, gone tomorrow

In the same vein, I read last week about a favorite personal finance columnist of mine, Jonathan Clements, (link to New York Times story, access may be required) who has been diagnosed with cancer and has had his retirement years cut back from decades to months.

Clements wrote in his personal finance blog Humble Dollar a few week ago, “Suddenly, I am the oddball. I’m a 61-year-old with perhaps as little as a year to live, and that means my financial life today doesn’t look like that of anybody I know.”

He then documented how his shortened lifespan has drastically changed his perspective and financial calculus. I’ve followed Clements’ writing from the Wall Street Journal to now his blog, but it’s still scary when life has a way of stepping in. Cancer? I’m just a frequent reader of his and have never actually met him, and I still found myself saying, “Where’d that come from?”

The cold hard facts

I thought about both stories yesterday — both are kind of sobering. I tried to find a hopeful message in the stories, a way to end on a positive note. I never like to end on a downer, but maybe that is the bright spot. Yes, yes, we can never take life for granted. It comes hard and fast and we need to take our best swing.

Here’s to giving our best shot.