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Quote of the Day – True Wealth
All . . . true wealth . . . is biological. – Lois McMaster Bujold, Mirror Dance
Those words are spoken by the character Count Aral Vorkosigan to his son, Mark Pierre Vorkosigan in the science fiction novel Mirror Dance. The count has suffered a major heart attack and may be dying. His son is a clone, created from his other son, Miles as a weapon against the Vokosigan family, but who rebelled against his creators (and actually everyone). When this episode takes place Mark has been involuntarily returned to his family, believes he may have done something that killed his older brother Miles (who vanished trying to rescue Mark during a battle. (The novel is worth reading – as are all of Bujold’s Vorkosiverse stories.)
There is a truth in that short statement. In the long run, the only wealth you really have is your family. I got three reminders of that this weekend. The first was the news that an old and close friend died. He was another ship modeler. He and I became close friends through that connection. I had dedicated a book to him and his wife shortly before she died. His wife died of cancer a year before mine did, and he helped me through some rough patches after Janet’s death from cancer. Now he is gone. I learned of his death through a message his daughter sent to a ship modeling society we both belonged to.
The second is a 50th anniversary party I will attend later today. The couple were possibly the closest friends Janet and I had when she was alive. The were over constantly the week before Janet died, and helped keep the house running. Today their children celebrate their being married 50 years. This couple will be surrounded by two children and their spouses and five grandchildren in addition to their friends at this celebration.
Finally, I am making a trip up to visit my oldest son, his wife and my only grandchild after that party. I will spend the weekend. It will be the first chance I have had to spend time alone with them since last Christmas. While my Janet is gone, her place is taken by a new Janet, her granddaughter.
In the end it does not matter how much you have in the bank and your stock portfolio, how many houses you own or toys you have to play with. What lives on after you are your children, their children, and the children they have. Everything else turns to dust. All true wealth – the kind that endures – is indeed biological.
Published in General
I loved the Vorkosiverse books but haven’t read all of them.
I particularly remember when Miles’ mother brings the head of the enemy to his father and says, “I brought you a gift. It cost too much.”
In Gentleman Joule and the Red Queen she comments on that saying, “You bring one dismembered body part one time and people never let you forget it.”
True, that. I think it’s a good self-assessment metric to every now and again ponder, “If I die right now, this moment, will I have any regrets?”
If the answer isn’t “no,” work out how to get to “no.” Guaranteed, the changes needed will be solely based on family, then friends.
Psalm 127 verses 3-5
Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.
Outstanding. Thank you.
It’s always exciting finding another Vorkosigan fan on Ricochet. At the science fiction convention I attended this summer, Guest of Honor Jim Butcher opined that Lois McMaster Bujold is the best writer we’ve got.
EB, you ought to join the science fiction group on Ricochet. Among the book covers I use in the banner photo is Mirror Dance.
We sent our eldest daughter off to college last week. The house is noticeably emptier without her in it, and the family dinners already are less than what they were.
Family is something you have to work at. I reminded her of this many times this past summer – that no matter the years or the distance don’t let your family connections wither. Several years ago I attended one of the very last family reunions on my mothers’ father’s side of the family. When I was a child it was not uncommon for over a hundred people to show up – the children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren of my grandfather and his six siblings. For the last decade, though, the reunion had so diminished as the older generations died and the younger ones spread further and further afield that there just were not enough people to bring together anymore. Not only had most of my grandparents’ generation died, but so too had many of my parents’ generation (the boomers). In fact, not 3 weeks after that last reunion, my mother’s older sister – her closest friend and confidant for over 60 years – died unexpectedly from an undiagnosed lung cancer that had metastasized all over.