wealth.

I have been thinking about this concept lately. What does wealth mean to you? Here in Alberta, wealth means expensive houses, hummers, bmw’s, mercedes benz, big campers and everything else that represents a pay cheque. West Edmonton Mall represents wealth. A place where you can go to spend, spend, spend.

But i miss the wealth in Nova Scotia. And I don’t mean material wealth. Nova Scotia is filled with wealth.

The wealth of beauty.
Oceans and breezes. greenery and blossoms.
There are no crystal blue oceans or salty breezes here. The rocky mountains are beautiful, but here in Edmonton, they are not accessible on an every day basis.

The wealth of space.
You can drive 5 minutes in any direction and be in the middle of nowhere.

Wealth of peace and quiet.
Would love a chance to sleep in where the only sound brought to your ears is the sound of birds.
The noise level of the traffic here is so unforgiving and it drives me crazy at times.

Wealth of small town life.
I love how at home, you can go for a Sunday drive and meander along down a country road.
Forget yourself for a moment here by not keeping your foot on the gas pedal, and people are honking at you and passing. What’s the rush? Slow down and feel life. Edmonton is a rat race.Where are all the rats going to in such a hurry?

Wealth of knowing how to slow down and relax. chill.
Here is all about perfect lawns, perfect grass, clean cars, everybody has to be doing something every minute of every single day. When you look out the window on the weekends, it’s all about mow, mow, mow and trim, trim, trim. So what if your grass is 1/8 of an inch too high?
Just slow down and stop. Chill. Take it slow. Soak up the sun. Have a beer and just chill.
It is not so easy to find that here.

Wealth is not about the “stuff”. It’s about quality of life. It’s about relationships.
It’s not about a pay cheque.

Ron is searching for his wealth in Alberta. Third day in a row he has gone scouting for a fishing lake.

There are lots of things we do like here.

But I can’t wait to go home.

Feel a salty breeze. Sleep in to the sound of birds. Go for a country drive. Chill at the Farmer’s Market on a Saturday morning.

Hug my family.