Father in Law

It has been a great week! First was young Michael and then on Saturday last, 15th July 2017, the wedding of my eldest son Alex to his beautiful Catherine.

Actually it has also been a party week as friends and relatives from all over came into Bermuda to help the celebrations which began on Wednesday last and ended only on Monday. I could not do this every week!

Looking through the lens of a parent, it is often difficult to differentiate the young man who, say, smeared dollops of vaseline into the carpet with a friend at age 2, lost one of his school shoes walking down some stairs (just one though) and so on with the handsome, articulate young man who effortlessly went through each of the events that constituted the full wedding. I know it's a parent's legacy to see things differently as we have known every step he ever took up until now -- which is why we remember him that way -- but to also know that we will most likely not be a major part of his future. That is something he will build with Cat.

That is entirely as it should be but it does leave you with a lingering sadness knowing that one of the happiest days of one's life is also the start of something else as well.

Mind you he did choose well with Cat -- or is it the other way around? Difficult to know these days of gender equality. Whatever, it turned out well. Cat is a planner and just loves spreadsheets. I hadn't realised just how much until Viv and I went with them both and Cat's parents to Japan when Cat produced a remarkable series of spreadsheets containing practical travel details as well as a daily itinerary for the near 3 weeks that we were in Japan... ahead of time. A phenomenal enterprise, but one that was dwarfed by the planning that went into the wedding.

On the day, the sun shone on the beach where it was held. The sea was calm for the boat trip to the island. And the evening was calm and starry when we made it to the island where the reception, dancing and general partying took place.

Cat and Alex won't be going off on their honeymoon until September so they got to enjoy each night of party as well. Not a bad idea actually!

Thanks and good luck to you both!

Love Dad

XXX

Great Uncle Mark

Sounds good, doesn't it? But at the same time rather daunting. However it is true for last Monday, 10th July 2017, a little boy was born in England named Michael weighing in at 7 lbs 9 oz and altogether hale and hearty as is his mum, my niece, Zophia.

And that's about it really as I could easily end my short piece at this point and not ramble on as is my wont on occasion, but it does make me wonder what young Michael's life will be in say 25 years which would make it the year 2042.  Chances are that his great uncle will no longer be around as that would make me really, really old but the world will continue and life will go on.

Many commentators have said that this next generation (and I am talking my children, not the one after that Michael has now joined) will be the first in history to have less of an economic future than their parents and it is really easy to see why people would think that. When I started work back in 1973 at the age of 19, nobody I knew had any money and very few went to university -- I think the statistic back than was 1 in 10 who did. So anything we did was upside. These days, far more go to university and most have far more than we did when we were young so expectations are greater.

Back then, I became an accountant because I wanted to not be unemployed like half of my school class were. These were hard times if you remember. That year a coup d'etat had brought down the Heath government in a rash of strikes that brought the country to a grinding halt. The UK had just joined the EU and given what has transpired within the last year in retrospect it seems surprising that these events were not blamed on the then named EEC (European Economic Community, a far cry from the European Union which has far more political overtones). In the ensuing election, there was no result (rather like this year's massive Tory party misstep) and so Parliament struggled on through 18 months of misery, strikes, runaway inflation, soaring interest rates and no money. I know this because my parents continually droned on about the "bloody Labour Party", the "bloody unions" and much else and because I last year read a book called 'The Seventies' which reminded me of this total and utter mess that the country entirely willingly wished upon itself and created. At the time I remember thinking the 3-day week was great as that meant I had 4 days off each week AND I had more money that I ever had before (which was nothing)... even though it was less by a large factor than any of my friends who at that time had work or who were on the dole even.  Being young and never having experienced anything like this before, I wasn't aware of any problems at all. I was having fun!

So I say to the pundits, mostly miserable economists who think mankind is doomed already (think of an early economist called Malthus) that when Michael turns 25 in the year 2042, he will be just fine. He will be at the start of a wonderful life which he will build and I can further foresee when he turns 60 that like his great uncle, he will wonder what his children and grand children will do when they grow up.

Don't worry, Michael. They will be fine!

Love Great Uncle Mark