UNITED STATES—Money, it seems to leave our pockets, purses and wallets as soon as we receive it. However, how often do we find ourselves in a situation where money is being spent, but it’s not ours. That is very rare to say the listen. The only time this transpires is when you’re a kid and you don’t have a job, so I’m shedding a bit of light on a situation that was a bit of an anomaly for me.
I’m the bank of my family; it seems any time someone is having financial woes they come to me first and it drives me bonkers. Why? You’re put into that predicament that you seem to always want to leave a bit of spare money in your pocket or the bank for whatever situation may arise.
However, this week something of interest transpired for me. Someone offered me money, the opportunity to spend frivolously as I pleased to get whatever I want because of all the sacrifices I’ve made for them in the past. My first thought in my mind was wondering just how this person came across whatever lump sum or extra money in their possession? This is something I know plenty of people to do ALL the time, whenever someone is a bit joyful about spending money on others. You might think it was a tax refund, a bonus from work, winnings from gambling or some unexpected financial gift.
None of that matters, as long as the person didn’t obtain the money illegally is key. The question of the hour is what do you do when someone is willing to allow you to spend their money on almost anything you want? It’s a tough question and a ton of things went flying through my mind. Do I just take advantage and spend as much as I can while I can? I mean I never know when this is going to transpire again, so I may as well take advantage of the opportunity while it’s presented to me. Unfortunately, my conscious would not allow me to do that.
I’m a rationalist; and because of that I can’t just do something without thinking of possible drawbacks from my actions. Yes, this person is giving me the opportunity to spend their money, but at the same time this is someone who doesn’t always have a ton of extra cash on them. As a result, my thinking is to put them in a position where they take some of that money and put it away for a rainy day. Yeah, they might have loads right now, but if not careful, it will be gone with the snap of a finger. I mean I could have purchased an expensive watch that I’ve been eyeing, clothing, shoes, gadgets; the list goes on and on. I know the question everyone is asking is rather I took the person up on their offer?
Of course I did! I’ve been told in life that if someone is offering you money you never reject it unless you know with certainty its dirty money. At the same time, I didn’t take everything they had, I put a reasonable price tag on what they were willing to offer me, and I agreed to $100. I think that is a suitable bargain whenever someone has thousands and they’re willing to give a few hundred. I think guilt is the worst thing when you receive money unexpectedly from someone, especially if they’re spending it and you’re just sitting there and watching it spent. It’s different if the person had just given you the money, which is what most people prefer. In that situation you feel like you’re in control and you’re spending YOUR MONEY and not someone else’s.
After a while I started to process that I shouldn’t feel guilty, I wasn’t taking advantage of anyone and on top of that, they were simply doing something for me to show their gratitude for all that I’ve done for them. It’s nice when you get those welcome surprises that you never expected. Especially, when it comes at a time when you need it most. There is this weird thought that money comes to us when we least expect it, it may not always appear directly in our hands, but you have to take your blessings when they come your way, but be reasonable about it.
