Waste Not – Want Not
Since my mother’s death, I’ve been reflecting on her life lessons. Another life lesson I learned from my mom – waste not – want not. Some call it being cheap. I call it being fiscally responsible, a lesson well worth learning.
Waste Not – Want Not – Financial Lessons
Waste not – want not meant you didn’t throw away anything until you had to. Leftover food was always better the next day. With a family of seven, including five growing children, no food went to waste. You always made sure the lotion bottles and shampoo and conditioners were EMPTY before they were thrown out, meaning they were turned upside down to get every last drop. You patched ripped sheets and used ragged towels. Old t-shirts were turned into cleaning cloths. Clothes were passed down to the child of the same gender after you. And costumes for Halloween? Take one of Dad’s old shirts and draw pumpkins, ghosts, and bats on it and you have your costume.
But it was more than that. It was an entire mindset passed on by my German mother that she learned from her German parents during the depression.
Live within your Means
Part of the waste not – want not mindset was that you live within your means. May seem simple but far too many people never learned this lesson. If you live within your means, you will always have enough. This means no buying with credit except for the big purchase in life like homes or cars. If you can’t afford it, you don’t buy it. Very simple. This way you didn’t go into debt.
If you live within your means, you will have enough. If you live above your means, no matter how much you make, it will never be enough.
Look for the Deals
Never buy anything full price if you can avoid it, is my motto. I clip coupons, look for buy one get one free deals and reduced prices. Clothes shopping trips with my mom entailed going to the back of the store where the sales racks were kept at that time. If we tried to linger over the new clothes in the front of the store, Mom would hustle us on, saying we were wasting time.
Mom would quickly assess whether they were any good deals. If there was nothing on sale for fifty percent off or more, we would quickly exit the store and move on to the next one. When we found a good sale, seventy percent off, we would spend hours trying on clothes.
Mom loved blue light specials at K-Mart and was among the blue haired ladies knocking over others to get to the latest deals when announced over the speaker. And when you found a good deal, buy in bulk! Our basement freezer was full of meat, ice cream, bread, all bought on sale. Shelves in the basement overflowed with toilet paper, paper towels, and canned goods.
My dad was my mom’s willing partner in this. When faced with the option of staying home with us kids when we were small or going to the store for groceries, my dad opted for the later. Mom would search out deals and make lists for Dad. My dad was good at finding his own deals. He often brought home bushels of peaches, tomatoes, cucumbers and corn from farmers he knew for my mom to can.
Save, Save, Save
It was ingrained in me from an early age the importance of saving. From the time I went to the local bank with my mom to open my first savings account, every time I had two dollars, I put them in the bank. I was saving for college. Not sure how I got that message embedded in my head, I just know it was there for as long as I could remember. Not going to college was a non-starter. Everyone of my siblings and I knew we were destined to attend college. The only question was which one.
Another aspect of this was that I regularly went without small luxuries in order to have money for bigger items I wanted. Spend money on a coke, a pizza, or slurpees from the local Seven Eleven? Nah. But when I wanted contacts, the money came out of my savings. When I wanted a nicer guitar than the starter one I had purchased for $25, the money was waiting in my savings.
When I started getting paychecks, I always deposited some in savings, even those lean years when raising a family on a church salary. That way when the inevitable unexpected expenses occurred, car expenses or a medical emergency or the invasion of bats in our attic that had to be removed, I had money saved to pay the bills. I also was able to save money to make regular repairs and upgrades to my house.
This was all part of living within my means. You put money into savings first then used what remained for bills.
Waste Not – Want Not
As I reflect back on my financial history, these lessons have served me well. Yes, I have had to learn over the years that it is okay to spend money on treats like lattes or ice cream. I have also learned about a God of abundance that gives lavishly beyond our needs rather than a God of scarcity, doling out just enough to get by. Still, the lessons made it possible for me to raise my children without the burden of debt outside of my home.
So once again, I thank my mom (and dad) for life lessons that provided a sound financial basis throughout my life. Waste not – want not is sound stewardship of resources.
What about you? What did you learn about money from your early years?
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