Chapter 19
In our family, Cinco De Mayo holds an extremely special meaning to us. It is the day we moved into our home. 12 Years ago today, our lives changed forever. Our home has become the center of our universe for our family. This is a story that is unbelievably optimistic and gives a unique perspective on how to view the most negative things.
In 2008, our country experienced the biggest economic collapse since the Great Depression. At the time, Kathi and I were living in Yorba Linda and had been for most of our teenage and adult lives. We were recently married, had two kids, and one on the way. We were living in a two bedroom apartment paying way too much for not enough space. Our plan was to buy a home, so instead of just giving money away for an unreasonable amount for rent, we wanted to invest in our future. Then the collapse happened. Almost every financial aspect of life froze. We were stuck. A few months after trying to figure out how we were going to navigate the dramatic shifts in our life, a horrific Fire – The Complex Fire swept through our apartment complex and burnt half off of everything down along with significant parts of Yorba Linda, Anaheim Hills, Brea, Diamond Bar and Chino Hills. It was probably the worst luck ever. These two events left such a significant impact on us. We were in a position were we had limited funds, a growing family, and huge obstacle to buy a home.
In Riverside, Kathi’s brother Rich, lived in a unincorporated part of Riverside near Lake Matthews, where there was a gated community riddled with the impact of The Great Recession, and many homes were being vacated and repossessed. It was the worst situation ever. We loved his neighborhood because every Christmas, his home was the central point for our family gatherings for Christmas Dinners and Parties. Other than him and his family, we had zero connection with the community or relationships. We didn’t necessarily want to move into an area that we weren’t familiar with, but we saw an opportunity for the future to set roots for our growing family. We decided to take a chance. The market was in a horrible slump, but for us, it was a giant opportunity to purchase since we had been preparing for it. We picked up our lives and bought a “bank owned” home that was in the absolute worst condition in a neighborhood, at the time, we could not necessarily afford. Because the home had been repossessed, it was an “As-Is” which means it had some incredible flaws. The previous owners were vindictive to the bank and had destroyed the home before leaving. Because of the economy, they didn’t put any money back into it and let the house die off. We spent a little less than a year getting all the paperwork complete and was a hugely stressful time for us. When we took keys to our future home on May 5, 2009, we entered into a home that had half of the electrical cut, paint poured all over the walls and floors, the toilet components cut from the inside, and the only appliance that worked was the stove. There was no faceplates to anything in the house and much more. We had no yard (everything was brown and dead), as it hadn’t been watered in a year or more, so thousands in the home and thousands in landscape needed to be invested – which was money we didn’t have.
As the first years progressed, we were dirt poor. We didn’t go out to eat, the movies, or do much or anything for nearly 5 years. Every dollar had a purpose. We definitely lived below our means. We became so accustomed to it that it has become a way of life for us. We invested all of our time, efforts, and sweat into our family and home. Now, we have paid off all our debt, invested into the future for our home and kids. We haven’t looked back since. We have carefully placed purpose into the important pieces of our life. Riverside became a community of developed relationships and connections that we now call home.
We now host all the family gatherings and are the central location for most of the holidays at our house. Our family has grown and we have seen significant growth in our careers. We have zero debt in our lives and now have a five year retirement plan. With the next five years, we have a plan for me to take the reigns as the primary earner in our home with a new teaching job. Within that time frame we plan to pay off our home, and plan for Kathi’s early retirement. All before 50 years old.
As you can see, it did not look perfect and there was a crazy amount of struggle and obstacles. So many different life events that seemed like it was the end of the world, but like I said at the beginning, this is a unbelievably optimistic story with an unparalleled positivity based on circumstance. If you would have told me at the start between the fire, economic depression, multiples surgeries, and everything that life has thrown at us in 12 years that we would be just a few years from paying off our house – I would have thought you were crazy! But with faith, optimism, hope, sacrifice and hard work from all parties involved – God had blessed us with these experiences that have led us to this point.
So many with weak minded vision will look at the negative, but if you train yourself – because it takes practice – to move past barriers and obstacles, you will put yourself in a better position in life than if you give up or have a negative attitude. I am so thankful for the struggle and the blessings our family has had. Today we celebrate our 12 years in our forever home.
Lastly, the past year during the pandemic has crushed so many people. Within this as a family, we chose not to be prisoner to our circumstances. As the Leaders in our house, both Kathi and I have BRAVELY worked full time jobs to support our family, coming into contact with either patients at a hospital or hundreds of different customers face to face in a drive thru for the past year DAILY. While many may not have the same opinions we have, we collectively agreed to set positive examples on how a Mother and Father should sacrifice for their family despite certain risks and/or public opinion. While the last year has been difficult for many people, it has been a year of massive growth for our family emotionally, spiritually, and financially. These 12 images that I am sharing with you are a glimpse of personal victories for our family despite many other struggles we all experienced the last 12 months.
I am so thank for today – Cinco De Mayo. May your life and your family be blessed and experience all the gifts the God has planned for you! Take advantage of every opportunity or obstacle that you are given in life. You can do it.
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Written By Chris Hulme ( aka – Coach Hulme ) #CoachHulme #ChrisHulme
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