TAXES
There is a word that brings so many different emotions from so many different people. It doesn’t matter
whether the person is rich, poor, young or old adult. Taxes! This one word is a rolling thought in the
minds and lives of everyone of age.
This isn’t about “oh the rich are getting richer or the poor are getting poorer”, this is a word that causes
some form of angst (good or bad) for everyone. This isn’t a word that only affects one group or the
other. This one word creates a human experience that ties all people in this country (and some abroad)
to a common action that creates a human emotion. This is a Human Story and experience.
Tax time can be a mixed bag of chips. Thoughts and emotions can range so wide and deep from: “When
will the W2s come”, to “Omg did I get the w2s out on time”. From “Did they take out enough taxes and
will I owe” to “how much I will get back this year as a refund”.
Tax Reform in the past year (2019) took a toll on most people. This added even more angst as many did
not (and still do not) understand what happened, why it happened or if it matters that it did happen, all
adding to the human emotion birthed out of Tax Time.
In the 20 plus years that I personally served in this industry, I do not think it laborious to embrace all of
the human emotions that all people go through relating to taxes. Yes, it is and can be stressful, but I
embrace it as I know that it is in fact that human emotion that fuels the calls, the conversations, the
stress, the disappointments, and even the joy that comes with Tax Time. It is because of how long that I
have severed, doing this work that I am equipped to handle the emotions from telling someone that
they owe and the emotions telling someone they are getting a large refund. There is always this one
possible outcome; what I say to them could change their lives at that time. So instead of just plugging
number into the computer, I make it a human experience because this is a very human emotion. I take
this time to educate, to find ways to ease the angst for the next year, to plant the seeds of change that I
take great joy when I see the flowers begin to grow!
Why do I write this letter today? To expose and share that this is a very normal feeling that the average
human will share. These feeling do not further the divide amongst us, but it actually can be a shared
experience that could bring us together and see the human in us all.
Written by Tina M. Riley, EA.
With over 20 years of experience as a Tax Advisor and Financial Health Strategist, Tina is President of TruFi of Maryland (Formally of Premier Accounting Services).
