It was an amazing week. This week, I bought insurance. For most, this wouldn’t seem like such a big deal. Covering your house, your car, your family against some catastrophe hopefully will never occur is a rather mundane necessity. But for me…this simple act of holding insurance papers in my hand was an amazing moment. One of those that instances that you tuck away in your memory file…never to forget.
I am divorced. Having been married for most of my adult life, there are a few things I never actually did for myself. Sure, I managed the house, the kids, the daily ins-and-outs of a job and family, but there were a few things that remained in “his” domain. It seems a little sexist in light of gender equality, but did I really need to be the one to roll the trash cans to the curb? File the taxes? Or obtain the insurance? No. Those were his tasks… I stepped back and was never involved.
Now, things have changed. I remember the day I first pulled those trash cans to the curb myself. I felt the pang of failure that our relationship hadn’t weathered the tests of time, but I also felt resolute, that feeling of accomplishment when you know things are going to be okay and that you will be survive whatever is to come. Pretty big feelings for such a tedious task.
I am forty years old and for the very first time in my life, I have now arranged for my own insurance. I got the papers this weekend and have not stopped smiling. I will forever thank State Farm Agent, Jim Seilsopour. He understood that this was a big moment for me. I might have a master’s degree, but I didn’t have the right vocabulary. He explained the coverage in terms I could understand. He explained umbrellas and liability. Jim asked me questions about MY home: Did I have an alarm system? Sprinklers? Was MY community gated? We talked about MY car, the one I use to take my family where they need to go. Jim made sure everything was protected.
When I took those papers from him, held the folder that said State Farm blazoned across the front, I had an indescribable feeling well up inside me. I had taken another step in my independence. It was a combination of strength and power mixed with security and protection. I must admit that buying insurance was an even better feeling than pulling out the trash cans…
If I feel this great about insurance…I can’t help but wonder how I will feel when I finally pay my own taxes for the first time?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
0 comments:
Post a Comment