Today is the second time that I’ve folded this ratty dishrag and placed it back in my kitchen drawer. It wasn’t easy but today I noticed a little face on the towel. It had two eyes and a smile. So I can’t really toss it yet!?! I must find out if a NOSE will soon emerge!?!
One who KNOWS me will vouch that I don’t keep overly worn ‘anything’ around here. I’m not a pack rat but I’m not wasteful either. Or am I!?!
No, I’m not. Growing up, we had old, worn out ‘everything’—a daughter of immigrant parents in a foreign country, the United States. In a small rural West Tennessee town, my parents were frugal and conservative. They used ALL of our belongings (mostly hand me downs) until they were worn—frayed at the edges and threads hanging. I remember the comfort of those towels that wrapped me up after clean water baths. I remember how my mother washed them and folded them….placing them back in a stack for us to use on our next bath.
The kitchen towels told the same story.
My bath towels at my house have never been frayed and worn to this degree. Nor have my dishrags until this one.
There are corners in our lives that need our attention. If we are struggling to pay bills or wanting to live debt free, then we must consider where every penny is spent.
Does this dishrag still do its job? Yes. Did my mother’s towels and dishrags do their job? Yes.
Conservatively.
My parents didn’t waste anything. They lived below their means so that they could enjoy retirement years and build a family home in Greece for all of their children & grandchildren to enjoy with them summer after summer. These stories can be told now because I understand why we had frayed towels and dishrags. Not because they couldn’t afford new sets…….
Are you saving money? Living below your means or living excessively?
I am the first to admit that I love nice, luxurious accessories but at what cost……
Not on credit.
Not at the expense of planning for a beautiful tomorrow….or at the cost of teaching my daughter to be wasteful. Resourceful living matters.
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