I never really understood my parents attitude toward money till this week.

[misanthrope]

85. Thankfully I listened to lots of family stories

Last edited Tue Mar 24, 2020, 07:05 PM - Edit history (1)

When I was born, five of my great grandparents and most of their kids were still alive. Two of the great grandparents died within my first few years, two more passed away after I was in grade school and one lasted until I was nearly 30.

The oldest of those was a woman who moved from north Mississippi to Birmingham in the early 20th century. The Magic City was booming on the back of its steel industry and attracting incoming residents from around the region and the world. She married and started a family.

The Great Depression hit Birmingham particularly hard. In its midst, her husband died from pneumonia, leaving her with four kids to feed. Relatives back in Mississippi assembled enough resources to keep her going, utilizing her marketable cooking skills in a little eatery. The kids chipped in to staff the business.

In childhood, I was always drawn to history. Living in the same part of Birmingham where my family had lived and worked for decades, I would catch snippets and memories recited. When the premiere of "The Waltons" TV show piqued my curiosity further, I asked about their experiences in that era. I took those tales to heart.

It taught me to put money in the proper perspective, to know its value without worshipping it. I understood materialism as a trap. Debt was something to be avoided at most any cost, only for an emergency. If I couldn't pay for something outright, I questioned if I really needed it.

When the Reagan era sought to counter all those lessons, I was wary. Americans were being led down a primrose path that ended at a tar pit.