Plan ahead

Our generation surely does not bother to save like our parents did. Our lives have become so unpredictable that most people will have an average of eight jobs throughout their lives. Whole communities that were made up of generations of families working in the same industry are now a thing of the past. We're the global generation- our peers come from all over the world and usually live continents-away from their families. Traditional families have been replaced by make-do support networks - friends, waifs and strays who all help each other out as the need arises. Long before there was globalisation in manufacturing and supply, there was cross border confusion and cultural schizophrenia of lonely souls. These lost souls exist to this day. Look around you.

The squirrel however looks at a British beech nut and does a tap dance of joy. The grey squirrel was once a foreigner brought in to the UK from the US. The indigenous red squirrel found the grey squirrels impossible not least because they stole all the food and worse yet, developed a maddening habit of eating fruit and nuts in their immature state and not even waiting for them to ripen. This particular survival technique of the grey squirrel ensured that it thrived to the detriment of the red squirrel who, well, preferred their fruit and nuts a point.

In 2008 the credit crunch came upon us. A sort of oxymoron, credit crunch really only signified that the schemers had miscalculated. Those who manipulate and play God usually find that the party eventually ends but like the grey squirrel, their propensity to adapt and prosper also becomes their saving grace. After all, the parallel universe in the trading markets is not exactly the real world.

In the meantime, beech nuts are aplenty in the woods these days and when the squirrels have feasted upon the nuts and thrown away the shells, we can take photos of them like this one. There are so many nuts that the squirrels are exhibiting a trader-like mentality- the ground is carpeted with nuts that are half eaten as if to say "Let then eat cake!"

Photos copyright SvD.