I read through some blog posts I wrote since COVID and was struck by how many changes our family has made in the last 18 months, and grateful we had the financial freedom to make them.
- We chose to not have me return to my library job in a school setting last fall because I would have been supervising unmasked kids at lunch. We were able to make this choice because of being debt-free.
- Once vaccines were becoming available I took a temp job at a hospital vaccine clinic. It paid well, I met great people, and ended up taking a permanent part-time job with that hospital system.
- Now I am riding the wave of opportunity as the hospital has many options for incentive pay due to being short staffed.
For me, one of the best reasons to be debt-free is it gives you more flexibility when life sends you unexpected situations. We were able to have me not work until vaccines were available, and when I went back to work I ended up in a better paying and more stable job!
The freedom to not work for 6 months led to some epic changes in our lifestyle, including a downsizing for the ages. That deserves its own post or two!
The Healthful Saver 
Wow, what a great outcome! You set the conditions in motion for good things to happen.
You know from experience that nothing beats being in the library, but with school being half virtual and half in person, the joys of the elementary library would not have been there.
It’s so true that having no debt gives you flexibility and more freedom! Good for you!!
Great to hear you guys are doing well. Will keep an eye out for further details. Take care.
Hope you are all doing well. Aren’t you grateful for every trip you took now that COVID has placed so many restrictions? We took a road trip to Iowa this summer…we hoped for Montreal, nope… then Boston, nope… but we got to Iowa and had a new experience
Just saw this now. Yes, similar experience, and not just COVID as we had to cancel trips due to forest fires last summer.