Are your financial habits in tune with your values?

We don’t do enough thinking about our finances.

I’m not talking about financial anxieties. You think a lot about your debts. They keep you up at night. If you’re married, they might cause a lot of fights.

You’re concerned that there’s not much in your retirement account, if you even have one. Your children’s grades or athletic abilities aren’t likely to win them enough money in scholarships, so you’re not sure how you’ll pay for college. And potential health care expenses make you sick with worry.

Since 2001, Gallup has asked Americans how concerned they are about seven financial issues: paying for the medical costs of a serious illness or accident; covering for normal health care expenses; maintaining a certain standard of living; saving for retirement; having enough money for monthly bills; housing costs; and making minimum creditcard payments.

Gallup’s 2016 report found that people are most concerned about retirement costs, followed by covering a major health care crisis and sustaining a certain standard of living.

Present and future financial costs occupy a lot of people’s thoughts. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote: “Can anybody remember when the times were not hard, and money not scarce?”

I have some financial advice that won’t require you to do anything but think. Spend some time and answer the following questions.

■ What do you value? Think about the most important things in your life. Do you value family or spending time with people? Is your career, faith or marriage something you want to prioritize?

If you say you value family, what does that really mean? Does it mean being just a provider? Or does it also include spending more time with them? And if your family does need more time from you, consider whether you’re working so hard to provide them with things that you aren’t home enough to enjoy their presence. If someone looked at your life, would the way you spend your time reflect your values?

■ What will it take to make your values a priority? For this question, think about how you want things to be, not how they are today. I want this exercise to be positive. Don’t beat yourself up.

This is a chance for you to think ahead. What does a good family life look like? What could you do to carve out protected family time in your schedule? What about family movie night? How about setting aside the same week — or two — every year to vacation together?

If you want to be a better spouse, what do you need to change?

If you want to be a more active church member, what would it take to make that happen?

■ What can you do with your money to show how important your values are in your life? The first two areas in this exercise naturally lead to the question of how you allocate your financial resources. Because how you spend your money should reflect your values.

One of my favorite scriptures says, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

If you want to test what you value — your heart’s desires — just look at where your money goes. Are you spending your money in the areas that you truly value?

If family is important, save up for vacations so you can have some fun time. And I said “save.” You may be taking a regular trip, but do you come back with the stress of paying for it because you put it all on a credit card?

Perhaps helping extended family is something you value. If so, first secure yourself financially so that you can give in a way that lifts them up without pulling you down.

If you want a better marriage, invest in some marriage courses or counseling. Do you want your children to get a college education? And if so, do you want them to graduate without debt? If so, what are you doing to ensure they won’t have to spend decades — perhaps as you have — struggling to manage college loans and their own living expenses?

People who achieve a certain amount of peace in their life do so because they think about what’s truly important. Then they create a plan to live out their values.

You can be rich in money but poor in spirit. Reflect on your past and figure out how you can make your future less worrisome. And it starts with what you value and ends with how you use your financial resources to demonstrate your life’s priorities.

There has been a lot of discussion lately about fake news stories, and recently Facebook announced plans to try and fact-check stories in their realm.

I would hope that some of the major genealogy sites would find a way for those of us who have actually researched our family histories to be able to flag/tag/put a frowny face or something on a family tree, or sections thereof, that are clearly wrong, or unproven.

I have found that family trees on familysearch. org not only have an incorrect ancestor posted on my tree, but, due to that error, claim I descend from or am kin to many luminaries, like Isaac Newton. No one is checking anything out, and you are given no recourse when someone hijacks your ancestors.

On ancestry.com, their system of hints via leafs allows many uninitiated researchers to click on something and put it into their tree when it has no business being there. On many trees, it would seem that a branch had no children, because there is no phrase or item to click saying something like “I don’t know anything about these folks, or whether they had any children or not.”

You can leave messages on ancestry.com, and you can leave a correction when data shows up, like census data, that may have been misinterpreted. But, there is little recourse when a family tree appears with so many errors that it will set back anyone believing that it’s true.

Polio is topic of lecture

“Polio: the Journey” will be the topic of the Jan. 17 Lunch and Learn lecture at the DeKalb History Center. Shelia Harkleroad will speak about her personal journey with polio in the early 1950s, before there was a vaccine or any cure. For those who lived through those times as children, it should be an interesting story.

The lecture will be at noon and is free; bring your own lunch. The DeKalb History

Gap in stroller can pinch hands

Qbit strollers, sold at Babies “R” US and other retail stores nationwide and Albeebaby.com, Amazon.com, Dmartstores.com, Medbroad.com and other online retailers from May 2015 through November 2016 for about $180. A gap in the stroller’s folding side hinge can pinch a caregiver’s hand during unfolding, posing a laceration hazard. Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled strollers and contact Aria Child for a free replacement stroller. Consumers can contact Aria Child toll-free at 888-591-5540 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET Monday through Friday or online at www. ariachild.com. Click on “Qbit Lightweight Stroller Voluntary Recall Information” for more information. Center is in the Old Courthouse on the Square in Decatur. For further information, check dekalbhistory.org or call 404-3731088, Ext. 23.

The center’s archives is the place to go for research into DeKalb County history or to contact with regard to donating items related to said history. There is a fulltime archival staff to help you with your research, but appointments are necessary, at the number above.

2017 anniversaries

This year will mark the anniversaries of several landmark events in history. This spring will be the 100th anniversary of the U.S. entering World War I with the declaration of war in April 1917. October will mark the 500th anniversary of the beginning of the Reformation in 1517. These events, and others — and the genealogy records they caused to be produced — will be covered in due course this year.

Nissan defect can affect air bags

2017 Nissan Versa: A seam in the fabric section of the side-curtain air bags may tear during side-curtain air bag deployment, potentially affecting the performance of the air bag. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 226, “Ejection Mitigation,” and No. 214, “Side Impact Protection.” In the event of a crash necessitating side-curtain air-bag deployment, if the side curtain air bags do not deploy as intended, risk of injury increases. Nissan will notify owners, and dealers will replace the left and right side curtain air bags for free. Owners may contact Nissan customer service at 800-647-7261.