I just read an essay in this month's issue of Vogue that I found fascinating. Written by a previously unemployed divorced mother of two, Maggie McGuane describes how she learned to become financially independent, stable, and resourceful in the midst of a nationwide economic downturn. What struck me the most about this article was how much Maggie's methods of saving and "making do," resembled my mother's. Having weathered both The Great Depression and WWII, habits of frugality and recycling, like reusing tinfoil, turning down the thermostat, growing fruits and vegetables in our backyard, and canning and preserving them for the winter months stayed with my mother well past these two unique eras in US history.
On this blog and within our company, I always stress the importance of making the most out of simple pleasures in life. Oddly enough, dips in the economy that oblige us to simplify whether we like it or not can be just the thing to get us started. Maggie says something to almost exactly the same effect towards the end of her piece:
"In place of money spent, my children and I now spent time together, making brittle in the kitchen for Christmas gifts, growing raspberries in the summer, canning jams and jellies in autumn."
Maggie, blessed with two lovely children and her newfound capability to live and thrive on less, is happy. 
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