One more down, and I'm not talking football..............

Yesterday I was able to pay off my student loan. Might not sound like much to those of you without debt, but it is a huge deal with me. It also means we only have one more loan to pay off. (note: I am not counting the credit cards that are in debt consolidation, though they are down from a starting count of fourteen accounts to six, and will be down to five in December.) As soon as (my) Mister gets approved for his term life insurance, we will be able to cancel his (according to Dave Ramsey,) rip-off whole life policy. That policy has a cash value of about eight thousand dollars so we will be able to pay off that last loan, and only have monthly utility/maintenance payments and our mortgage. It has been THIRTY-ONE years since I have been able to make that claim. Do you believe that? About one hundred and thirty thousand dollars paid off in two and one half years! WOW! (And totally ridiculous that we got that deep in debt in the first place!)

I am putting that in writing so you know it can be done. If you are drowning in debt you can learn how to swim against the tide and save yourself. I tell you this because I too know the feeling of being overwhelmed by bills, and stuggling to get a grip on money instead of simply watching it slip through my fingers month after month, on its way to a bill collector. It's these feelings that I really want to talk about in this post.

Yesterday, after making the last student loan payment, one would think I would be jumping with joy. How did I react? I was so happy, that I just started sobbing. Poor Mister, he didn't know what to make of it all. Through out the evening, as I would share the good news with someone, the tears would well up again and again. What was really going on?

Like I have shared before, Money has always been a concern in my life. I always managed to pay my bills, but not without great stress month after month, year after year. Constantly looking for ways to cut corners, and stretch those dollars takes its toll on a person. Crying yesterday was a cleansing of sorts, finally being able to know that those stressful times are behind me. Everytime things got tight, I would put that stupid student loan on deferment (because I could) so that I could pay something else, or be able to feed the kids. Everytime I had to defere that loan, it pushed the payoff date back and increased the amount I would be paying because. Of course, though I could put off the payments the interest continued to rack up, but what could I do? I couldn't worry about the interest when I turning over couch cushions to find change for school lunches.

To never have to concern myself with having to make those choices again is the best gift I could ever get. Bonus... Having that monthly payment in my pocket rather than out the door every month opens up a world of possibilities.

The tears came from relief. I feel as if the weight of the world has been lifted off my shoulders. I wish everyone could feel the joy that I am feeling as these finacial stresses leave my life. If you are feeling hopeless and overwhelmed about money, I want to encourage you to decide today to let those feelings go and look for concrete ways to change things. If you are reading this, then you most likely have a computer and can tune into Dave Ramsey. He has tons of good advice, but he also has the goal of giving people hope of a debt free lifestyle. He makes his listeners laugh, and he also makes them mad. Anyone that cares more about helping people than about how they feel about him personally gets my vote. Check him out for a few weeks. Not only will he grow on you, his ideas will change your life if you decide to utilize them.

In case you are wondering... Though it might sound like it, this is not an paid advertisment for Dave. Listening to him has done so much for our family, I want to be able to share the peace he teaches with all of you.