2. Invest in my startup.
I haven't thought along these lines in a while, so here goes:
My son got into meth. People, that substance is brutal! Changes people in basic, very hard to undo ways. He has left me his daughter, and the woman he conceived her with is on heroin! Needless to say, total fail. Both are in and out of jail, various camps, places, and it's all pretty foul. I put a lot into fixing this and had basically zero impact. Not sure what I think about that outcome. Mostly not good thoughts. Wish I was better, had a super power of some kind. Don't. None of us does.
So, I'm doing the father thing again with my wife, and it's harder and easier this time around. Harder in that being older means less energy, easier means we know what we are doing more than we did the first time. The good in all this is my granddaughter is great! Smart, appears to be unharmed from all the ugly stuff and we are having good times. Young people tend to see the world in ways I find makes my own more robust and fun.
I want her to have a good start, see some of the world and have a great chance to avoid the things her parents have stumbled into. Some of that million would go to a fund that can grow and be available to her when she is of age and able to act on it. Some more would go to some travel to experience some other cultures, give her perspective. It's hard to put a value on those things, but with my wife and I having had them, we know it matters. Some would go into education now, and perhaps a mix of possibilities for her fund when it's time. I came from modest means and some poverty, as did my wife and we've done well, despite some tough knocks. We both feel that's harder to do now, and would see this little one have a head start and do great things.
You might ask about treatment for her parents. Sure! I would put money on that easily, but I have learned something hard: None of that works until the people who need it are ready for it to work and right now? Neither parent is anywhere near ready. We both hope that changes. We want it to change, but this is not our call.
A health care event during a time when a less than stellar employer caused the loss of our home, but we had also helped a family member buy a duplex when we were doing well. Great! We moved in to that, and that family member lost their job.
LOL, and yes I have to laugh. We were able to just cover it all for a while, and now we all have a place to live as we get old. Uncle is bored and a bit lonely anyway, and having us move in has generally been good. He won't admit it, but he loves the little one more than he knows. She is lucky to have him.
I would pay that mortgage off, fix it up, and free our daily working dollars for better living now with fewer worries and the ability to save.
My own kids are doing well, one son aside. They could use some help, and being able to do that for them would be amazing! They are starting their families, lives building and who knows what they may do? I would love to find out.
With the family secure, given funds remain?
I think I would love to ask this question of the young one, and then just go do it with her. She would probably want to improve the park, have a mega party with everyone she can see and do all sorts of cute, well meaning things for people she knows, places she values.
I think I'm fine and at max potential when all the humans who matter to and are connected to me are secure and able to be the people they can be. I would make sure that's true.
Through all this, I've been working on a manufacturing related start up, and that's going to spawn a software one that holds a lot of promise in that it can automate some manufacturing prep work currently requiring very skilled people and significant amounts of time. The team believes we have what we need, for the most part, and just need to free ourselves enough to execute. I believe that myself.
I would make sure a portion of that would be used to buy time and labor to permit just, basic living and focus on family without the longer days needed to bring something new up while doing what is needed to fund an ordinary life. In short, some things I can do, but would benefit from being able to pay someone to do.
Finally, yeah. I don't have some world changing idea.
Not for a million. Wish I did. But what I could do is improve that part of the world I am connected to and amplify the good in those people, myself, and watch it spread and do what that kind of thing does.
And there we go! Dream time over. Thanks for the nice muse. It's a rainy day, and it was nice to forget that for a while.