At 82, I find myself starting over financially for the third time in my life. I did not expect to be in this position at my age, but there is no benefit in pretending that it did not happen. I have lost enough money three times that I have had to stop and ask myself two serious questions: How did this happen again, and what am I going to do about it now?
When you are younger, you usually believe that you have plenty of time to correct your mistakes. At 82, you cannot take time for granted in the same way. That realization has changed how I think about my situation and what I intend to do next. I am not finished, but I know that I must use my remaining time carefully.
I have finally learned to slow down and study before making important decisions. I am not studying in a formal classroom, although I have spent much of my life involved in education. This is a very personal kind of learning. I am trying to understand how energy, money and human behaviour are connected, instead of reacting immediately to what I hear or following what other people are doing.
I was raised on a farm, and I have always been proud of that. While I was living and working in China, someone once advised me not to mention my farm background because some people might consider farmers uneducated or backward. I never agreed with that attitude. I believe growing up on a farm taught me lessons that have remained useful throughout my life.
Farm life teaches patience because nature cannot be rushed. Crops do not grow faster simply because you want immediate results. You prepare the soil, plant the seed, do the necessary work and wait. Weather and other circumstances will always be partly beyond your control. At this stage of my life, I am returning to those early lessons: do not rush, do not react emotionally, and do not expect everything to change overnight.
My study of investments led me back to something the world cannot do without—energy. Every country needs dependable electricity, regardless of its language, culture or political system. The methods used to produce energy will continue to change, but the basic need will remain. This understanding gave me a clearer direction for rebuilding my financial position.
I also recognized that emotional decisions had caused me trouble. Excitement can make an opportunity appear better than it really is, while fear can cause a person to sell or abandon a reasonable plan at the worst possible time. I am trying to replace both excitement and panic with research, patience and calm thinking. I cannot say that I will never make another mistake, but I can change how I make my decisions.
My recovery has not come through one wonderful investment or a sudden stroke of good luck. It has been much more like laying one brick at a time and then adding another. Progress can appear very slow while it is happening, but those individual bricks eventually begin to form something solid.
Today, I am in a better position than I have been for a long time. This is not because I suddenly became smarter than everyone else. It is because I finally became more willing to slow down, examine my own mistakes and change some of my old habits. I am still learning every day, and I hope that will never change.
My most important reason for rebuilding is not to purchase more things for myself. My wife has worked night shifts for many years, first as a nurse in China and later in Canada. Working at night and trying to sleep during the day have become increasingly difficult for her. I want to create enough dependable income so that she will no longer have to continue working those night shifts.
I have started again before, and now I am doing it for the third time. I do not know exactly how the entire story will end, but I know that losing money does not have to mean losing hope, purpose or the willingness to learn. My situation may be difficult, but it is not hopeless.
You can start over—even at 83.
At 82, I find myself starting over financially for the third time in my life. I did not expect to be in this position at my age, but there is no benefit in pretending that it did not happen. I have lost enough money three times that I have had to stop and ask myself two serious questions: How did this happen again, and what am I going to do about it now?
When you are younger, you usually believe that you have plenty of time to correct your mistakes. At 82, you cannot take time for granted in the same way. That realization has changed how I think about my situation and what I intend to do next. I am not finished, but I know that I must use my remaining time carefully.
I have finally learned to slow down and study before making important decisions. I am not studying in a formal classroom, although I have spent much of my life involved in education. This is a very personal kind of learning. I am trying to understand how energy, money and human behaviour are connected, instead of reacting immediately to what I hear or following what other people are doing.
I was raised on a farm, and I have always been proud of that. While I was living and working in China, someone once advised me not to mention my farm background because some people might consider farmers uneducated or backward. I never agreed with that attitude. I believe growing up on a farm taught me lessons that have remained useful throughout my life.
Farm life teaches patience because nature cannot be rushed. Crops do not grow faster simply because you want immediate results. You prepare the soil, plant the seed, do the necessary work and wait. Weather and other circumstances will always be partly beyond your control. At this stage of my life, I am returning to those early lessons: do not rush, do not react emotionally, and do not expect everything to change overnight.
My study of investments led me back to something the world cannot do without—energy. Every country needs dependable electricity, regardless of its language, culture or political system. The methods used to produce energy will continue to change, but the basic need will remain. This understanding gave me a clearer direction for rebuilding my financial position.
I also recognized that emotional decisions had caused me trouble. Excitement can make an opportunity appear better than it really is, while fear can cause a person to sell or abandon a reasonable plan at the worst possible time. I am trying to replace both excitement and panic with research, patience and calm thinking. I cannot say that I will never make another mistake, but I can change how I make my decisions.
My recovery has not come through one wonderful investment or a sudden stroke of good luck. It has been much more like laying one brick at a time and then adding another. Progress can appear very slow while it is happening, but those individual bricks eventually begin to form something solid.
Today, I am in a better position than I have been for a long time. This is not because I suddenly became smarter than everyone else. It is because I finally became more willing to slow down, examine my own mistakes and change some of my old habits. I am still learning every day, and I hope that will never change.
My most important reason for rebuilding is not to purchase more things for myself. My wife has worked night shifts for many years, first as a nurse in China and later in Canada. Working at night and trying to sleep during the day have become increasingly difficult for her. I want to create enough dependable income so that she will no longer have to continue working those night shifts.
I have started again before, and now I am doing it for the third time. I do not know exactly how the entire story will end, but I know that losing money does not have to mean losing hope, purpose or the willingness to learn. My situation may be difficult, but it is not hopeless.
You can start over—even at 83.
我的不沉之舟处境——83岁重新开始
作者：Roger Humbke
83岁时，我发现自己在人生中第三次不得不在经济上重新开始。我从未想到自己在这个年纪会处于这样的处境，但假装这件事没有发生并没有任何好处。我曾三次损失了足够多的钱，以至于不得不停下来，认真问自己两个问题：为什么这样的事又发生了？现在我准备怎么办？
年轻时，人们通常相信自己有足够的时间去改正错误。到了83岁，你就不能再用同样的方式把时间视为理所当然。这种认识改变了我看待自己处境的方式，也改变了我下一步的打算。我并没有结束，但我知道必须慎重地使用我余下的时间。
我终于学会在作出重要决定之前先放慢脚步、认真研究。我并不是在正规的课堂里学习，虽然我的一生大部分时间都与教育有关。这是一种非常个人化的学习。我正在努力理解能源、金钱和人类行为之间的联系，而不是一听到什么消息就立刻反应，或盲目跟随别人正在做的事。
我是在农场长大的，而且我一直以此为荣。当我在中国生活和工作时，有人曾劝我不要提起自己的农场背景，因为有些人可能会认为农民没有受过教育，或比较落后。我从不认同这种看法。我相信，在农场成长教给我的人生道理，至今仍然很有用。
农场生活教会人耐心，因为大自然不能被催促。庄稼不会因为你想马上看到结果就长得更快。你要准备土壤，播下种子，完成必要的工作，然后等待。天气和其他情况总会有一部分超出你的控制。在我人生的这个阶段，我正在回到那些早年的教训：不要匆忙，不要情绪化地反应，也不要期待一夜之间所有事情都会改变。
我对投资的研究，使我重新关注到一件世界离不开的事——能源。无论语言、文化或政治制度如何，每个国家都需要可靠的电力。生产能源的方法会继续改变，但这种基本需求不会改变。这个认识给了我一个更清晰的方向，去重建自己的经济状况。
我也意识到，情绪化的决定曾给我带来麻烦。兴奋会让一个机会看起来比实际更好；恐惧则会使人在最不合适的时候卖掉投资，或放弃一个本来合理的计划。我正在努力用研究、耐心和冷静思考，取代兴奋和恐慌。我不能说自己以后绝不会再犯错误，但我可以改变作决定的方式。
我的恢复并不是来自某一项惊人的投资，或一次突如其来的好运。它更像是一块砖一块砖地铺下去，然后再加上一块。在这个过程中，进展看起来可能非常缓慢，但这些一块块的砖，最终会开始形成坚实的基础。
今天，我的处境比很长一段时间以来都更好。这不是因为我突然变得比其他人聪明，而是因为我终于更愿意放慢脚步，检视自己的错误，并改变一些旧习惯。我每天仍在学习，而且我希望这种学习永远不会停止。
我重新开始最重要的原因，不是为了给自己购买更多东西。我的妻子多年来一直上夜班，先是在中国当护士，后来又在加拿大工作。夜间工作、白天睡觉，对她来说变得越来越困难。我希望能够创造足够可靠的收入，使她不必再继续上夜班。
我以前重新开始过，而现在，我正在第三次重新开始。我不知道整个故事最终会如何结束，但我知道，失去金钱并不一定意味着失去希望、目标或学习的意愿。我的处境可能很困难，但并不是没有希望。
即使到了83岁，你仍然可以重新开始。
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