This week I went on a helicopter ride over Lake Erie with my daughter Nomi.
Now, it’s kind of interesting because I never considered myself a risk-taking person, but at the time of this writing, I have jumped out of an airplane once at 10,000 feet, and have taken, to date, two helicopter rides over very large bodies of water.
I find these things thrilling and exciting but in my real life, I am actually quite risk-averse. The truth of the matter is, when I think about it, that each one of these activities was a bonding opportunity with one of my kids. When my son Moshe turned 20, I took him skydiving; I took my son Avromi to California and we did a helicopter ride over the Pacific Ocean (where we got to see dolphins jumping out of the water and also Oprah Winfrey‘s house, in one fell swoop), and finally, this recent escapade was a bonding opportunity for my youngest daughter Nomi.
Many people asked me what was the occasion that I booked the helicopter ride. Some of you may know that I am growing my coaching business, and my business coach challenged us to set a personal goal and to determine a reward that we will give ourselves if we meet our goal. I did meet my goal, and the reward that I had promised myself was a helicopter ride over Lake Erie.
Some of you may also know that my husband is the type of guy who prefers to keep two feet firmly on the ground. In fact, he doesn’t even like to watch other people engaging in these activities, so I turned to my youngest and asked her if she would like to join me. Unsurprisingly, she enthusiastically agreed.
There is a lot of discussion about whether money can buy happiness, and of the things that I have learned over the years, as I approach 50 years on this planet, is that while money can’t buy happiness, the best way to spend your money to increase your happiness is to spend it on experiences with people you love.
Most things that you spend your money on will not last, and will get old and shabby with time, but when you spend money on experiences with people you love, the memories actually get better over time. I have never once regretted spending money on a spectacular experience with a loved one.
The time spent together connecting is actually priceless, and we refer back to these experiences for many years. I’m really grateful for the opportunity to spend time one-on-one with my kids whenever I can, especially doing “crazy” activities that most people don’t typically do. This is what makes the memories a stand out in our minds and even enhances them with the passage of time.
So maybe the answer to the question, “what was the occasion that you went on a helicopter ride?” was the following: I don’t actually need an occasion to spend one-on-one time with my kids and to create memories that will last a lifetime.
Shabbat shalom,
Ruchi