October 15, 2019 • Page 2 shop online at www.missourivalleyshopper.com Equal Respect Dave Says Now Or Later? Dear Dave, My husband lost his job last week. The good news is we’re completely debt-free, and we have a six-month emergency fund saved up. I work part-time, since we have young children, and I’ve been bringing home about $800 a month. Should we cut our budget down to bare bones now, or do you think we could continue living as usual for the time being since we have so much money saved? Jayme Dave RAMSEY Dear Jayme, I’m sorry to hear about your husband losing his job. At the same time, I’m really proud of you two for saving and preparing yourselves financially for this kind of scenario. Eight hundred dollars a month isn’t bad for a part-time job, but it’s not nearly enough to run a household—even one that’s debt-free—when there are kids in the picture. You should already be living on a little as possible in order to make the money in your emergency fund last as long as it can. It’s beans and rice time in your house. That means no restaurants, no vacations, and no movies. In other words, no spending on anything but bare necessities until your husband finds another good job, and you guys are back on your financial feet again. Right now, your priorities are keeping the lights on, the water running, and making sure there’s food in the pantry. This is a textbook definition of an emergency, Jayme. Use your emergency fund. It’s there for times just like these. But be wise, and spend as little as humanly possible. God bless you all! —Dave Wellsir, I ast ol’ Slim if mebbe I could contribulate to his Home Country columns if I ever had something important to renounce. And he said he wanted to go hunting, anyway, so why not now. So howdy. This here’s Windy Wilson, you know. I’m the guy on the Home Country with Slim Randles radio show what edumacates folks to stuff they ain’t heard the straight of before. I timed ‘er just right the other day. Strolled on into the Mule Barn when I knew Doc and the guys would be there. Then … to take advantage of medicational science when it’s sippin’ coffee, I rolls up my sleeve and shows Doc my elbow. Then I said, “Doc, what do you reckermend for a elbow with a carbolic uncle on it like this here?” And ol’ Doc, he looks right at me, takes a sip o’joe, and says, “Youth in Asia.” Youth in Asia? Hey, you know me, I ain’t got a thing against them Chinese kids. I sure like to watch ‘em in the Olympics. You see them Chinese girls diving? Boy howdy! And them Korean guys shootin’ their bows? Flamtastic! And I’m sure they’re all really nice folks ‘n all, but what do them kids know about elbows? So I undulated to the library and ast if they had anythin’ on fixin’ elbows A Good Emergency Fund? Dear Dave, I have about $12,000 in company stock. Could I use this as my emergency fund? Jeff Dear Jeff, If you want to call that $12,000 an emergency fund, that’s okay. But if that’s the case, I’d strongly advise cashing out the stock and putting the money in a good, easily accessible money market account—one with checkwriting privileges. Stocks are long-term investments. The only purpose of an emergency fund is to have cash on hand immediately in the event of an emergency. Specifically, an emergency fund is there to cover the unexpected expenses life throws at you from time to time. It’s not an investment, and it’s not designed to replace income. That’s why I believe it’s essential to keep your emergency fund liquid and easy to reach! —Dave * Dave Ramsey is America’s trusted voice on money and business, and CEO of Ramsey Solutions. He has authored seven best-selling books, including The Total Money Makeover. The Dave Ramsey Show is heard by more than 12 million listeners each week on 575 radio stations and multiple digital platforms. Follow Dave on Twitter at @DaveRamsey and on the web at daveramsey.com. Check out the for great specials at your local restaurants! In Print and Online! in China or Japan or Korea or Cambloodia, or any a them Asian countries. Mrs. Cutter looked at me kinder weird, but brought me back a book on Asia medicine and I checked ‘er out.. You know what them guys do when they got a misery or a stove-up in a certain place? They stick pins in it! Knowed you wouldn’t believe me. But they do. They call it accurate puncher. And if stickin’ a pin ain’t getting’ the job done, why they ups the ante ‘n puts a marshmeller on the top of the pin and sets it on fire! Yessir. I knowed ol’ Doc wouldn’t steer me wrong … so I did ‘er. 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Had some left over from Halloween, you know, last year. And I put one on that pin and ignitified it. Singed all the hair around my elbow, too. Did it work? Not really. Mebbe you got to have a Asian elbow to get all the benerfits of it. But that there marshmeller shore tasted good. And you can tell ‘em I said so. Rachel didn’t like moving out west with her family, leaving their nice New England home. She was only eleven when they moved, and it was a long, arduous journey across the plains in the covered wagon. Her father worked hard and built a modest cabin, but three small rooms for twelve people made it more than a little crowded. But what bothered Rachel most was how her father insisted they treat the Native Americans with respect. Most of the other settlers’ children talked negatively about them, but Rachel didn’t dare. More than once, her father had scolded her for her attitude. He was a religious man and insisted everyone was equal in God’s eyes. “Rachel,” he said, “if you treat others with respect, most people will return that respect to you, and your life will be better.” Another thing her father insisted on was that if any of the Native Americans came to their home and were hungry, they were fed. Rachel’s father told her, “This was their land before we came. We are their guests, and they will be ours. If we have food, we will share it with them.” Rachel had hardly seen a week go by without a few Native Americans coming by. Usually, it was only Native American men traveling in hunting parties. But sometimes, there would be whole families, including mothers and children. When they came, Rachel’s father encouraged Rachel and her siblings to make friends with the children, but Rachel would have none of it. Rachel also despised having to share their food. There were some winters when they ran low and had to ration it. Rachel’s mother was always cooking. Rachel’s father mostly only grew wheat and potatoes because they gave the most food for the cultivated land. The Native Americans loved bread and potatoes. Rachel felt if they didn’t have to share so much, her father might have food to sell, and then they could have other things that she liked better. But above all, there was one Native American man that Rachel liked the least. It was not because he was mean or caused problems. It was because he always wore a skunk skin. The smell churned Rachel’s stomach, and she would always go out and stay in the barn until he left. She called him Skunk Man, at least when her father wasn’t listening. And try as she might, Rachel could not find any positive feelings toward Skunk Man. Then, one day, after Skunk Man and the group he was with left, the family realized their youngest girl was gone. Rachel’s little sister was only three, and Rachel was sure that Skunk Man must have taken her. Surely a child that small couldn’t have gone far on her own. Anger swelled in Rachel’s heart. The family started to search, but Rachel was sure it would do no good. She was sure she knew where her little sister was. Rachel’s older brother was dispatched to ride to the neighbors’ houses asking all he met for help in the search. Soon a large group gathered. They searched all day and much of the night, but to no avail. Then, the next morning, Skunk Man and those with him were back. That made Rachel angry. Did they come back to admit what they had done? She could see by the reaction of neighbors that many of them felt the same way. Skunk Man, using sign language, asked her father where the child had last been seen. Rachel’s father took Skunk Man to the yard behind the house. Skunk Man got on his knees and looked carefully at the ground. Soon he and the men with him moved off in the direction of a small ravine. Others, including Rachel and her mother, followed. The Native Americans kept stopping and checking the ground and items around them, then continued on. When they were less than a quarter-mile from the house, the men stopped at some bushes. They checked all around them, then Skunk Man let out a loud yell. Suddenly, he started digging at an old badger hole, and the other men helped him. Eventually, Skunk Man slid face-first into the hole until only his feet were sticking out. Then he let out a yell from underground, and the other Native American men pulled him out. Tucked in Skunk Man’s arms was Rachel’s little sister. Her face was tear-stained, and she was a bit scratched up, but she was otherwise unhurt. When Skunk Man handed the child to her mother, Rachel watched her strong, brave mother break down and sob. From then on, Skunk Man was one of Rachel’s favorite people. She would smile when she saw him coming and invite him into their home. And she didn’t even mind the skunk skin. At least, not too much. 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(605) 5 3 89-3909 or Cell (605) 464-111 finding the right job is easier than you think 11AM TO 3PM Lesterville Community Hall Menu Includes: Chicken Noodle Soup, Vegetable Soup, Chili Soup, Hot Dogs, Taverns, Chicken Salad Sandwiches, Kolaches, Pie & Desserts Raffles • Cake Walk • Fish Pond • Bingo Sponsored by St. John’s Catholic Church when you’ve got the right direction Stop searching. The Help Wanted section of the Missouri Valley Shopper lists many possible new job opportunities. Find a career that’s right for you. MV Shopper M I S S O U R I VA L L E Y M I S S O U R I VA L L E Y