brotherly love

This is a personal story, about wealth and worth.

This is a story about wealth management.

This is a story about decisionmaking.

I live in Woodstock, NY. Home to rebels, artists, utopians and visionaries. And more than a handful of aging, ragged hippies.

My oldest brother – a full 17 years older – is a rib-munching, opera-loving, republican-voting, churchgoing good-ol’-boy who loves nothing so much as a quick flight to Argentina in his KingAir, five days of solid dove-shooting, and nights full of rich meals and tango.

Together, we’re in a family limited partnership, land-rich, and which constitutes about 90% of our shared net worth.

We have this little problem: my brother, bless him, doesn’t really like to pay attention to bad news. Bad news is stuff like, no, I don’t want fried bacon sandwiches for breakfast. And, well, he likes to get his way.

Now me, I believe in universal brotherhood and unconditional love. Living in Woodstock will do that to you. But personally, with personal brothers, it’s so much harder! Universal brothers, in theory, are much easier to love. Utopian brothers.

Repeatedly, when I visit the ranch, my brother shows up and violates the home with his dog or his loud habits. I can’t change him; and of course, suggesting that he needs to change violates his mantra – “no bad news.”

What do I do? How do I love this guy?

This little case illustrates the way that a big house can be brought down by small things. Everyone in my family is clever, creative, and successful in their own ways. And yet: we’re also leaders, with strong opinions about “how things should be done.”

What do we do?