Bears and Bulls

And no. I'm not talking Chicago Sports teams.

I'm talking stock market world. There are "bears" and there are "bulls".

Bears are people who short stocks that they don't yet own hoping to buy them after the shares go down in price and then deliver them to the owner. They are pessimests and often skeptical. They are known for bringing the market down.

Bulls buy a stock with the expectation and hope that the price will go up. They tend to be optimistic and hopeful. They are known for bringing the market up.


Let me give you an example:

Bears might take a slowed economy, rising health care costs, rising interest rates and higher gas prices as a bad thing and cause a panic and sell off on related stocks.

While those data points may be true, Bulls might take a different approach and see an opportunity for future growth in stocks related to healthcare, banking or oil.


I've thought about it and realize that there might be a similarity between "bulls" and "bears" in the stock market, and the "bulls" and "bears" in life.

Some bears in life are pessimistic and skeptical. Sometimes, bears like to intimidate people and tear them down. They sell themselves and others short rather than look ahead and see their potential growth. They might see their glasses as half empty.

Bulls in life, are hopeful. They see the good in others and recognize their unlimited potential. They are encouraging and patient. They set long term goals with the understanding that growth takes time. They might see their glasses as half full.

Commodities in the market are things such as precious metals or life sustaining resources like grains, cattle or oil. These commodities can be traded or sold as "futures" which is a contract or obligation to buy the product in the future. To guarantee that payment will be made, futures often have a margin requirement that must be settled on a daily basis.

Isn't this a lot like our lives? We are commodities. We are precious and in need of life sustaining resources to survive. We have made a futures contract ourselves. It is with our Heavenly Father. This contract for our future states that we promised to return and live with Him again someday. But, like the market dictates, we too, must settle our payments on a daily basis. We can do this through prayer, fasting, paying our tithing, repentance and obeying the commandments. This takes commitment and patience. There will always be good days and bad days. Highs and lows if you will. Just like the market. But we must remember to never, ever sell ourselves short.

We need hope and patience with ourselves and with one another. Keeping our eye on the goal is the key. If we can understand that, then I believe the return on our investment will be far more than we could ever imagine.