Forget Money: Back to Trade!
59
Don't gimme the cash!
I've decided to take money out of the equation. Seriously. Call me old-fashioned, call me idealistic: I simply can't stand it. It seems absurd to assign an arbitrary value to little pieces of paper or metal coins and make one's life as dependent on them as we do these days. Worse yet, modern stock trading, online banking, and credit cards make financial viability look like pie in the sky to me. Hear me out; I've found some starter solutions to tackle this issue.
People are obsessed with money. I don't know if that is a commentary on our highly competitive nature or a sad by-product of capitalistic conditions, but it drives modern living and truly creates a divider between neighbors, friends, family members, and social classes. That sounds just a tad opinionated, I know, I know. Conversations between acquaintances often focus on salary increases, accumulation of wealth (or lack thereof), exciting purchases, and - naturally – how all this compares to the neighbors next door. Whoever can claim the highest income, most recent feat in the stock market, or the most expensive new car walks away from that conversation with their chest stuck out as the peacock would display its tail, feeling slightly superior. People are talking about the sweetest deal, the highest discount, the best their money will buy.
Sorry, folks, I got news for you. All those numbers on paper, in your online checking account, or those bills in your pocket can't convince me you are a decent human being. I happen to believe that there is more to life than possessions, than dollars and cents. You may not care about that, so I will also tell you this: the illusion of money is transient. Stocks dip, prices go up, interest rates down, jobs get lost, personal expenditures for medical care and housing rise; and every once in a blue moon, whatever commodity you invest in turns out to be a rotten egg.
This is why
When my daughter, who just turned five, caught on to what money could do (and buy), she began to unabashedly ask family visitors for cash. With her hand outstretched and innocently blinking her gorgeous eyes, she'd approach them and honestly ask: “You got some money for me and my piggy bank?” As a response, we instituted a pocket money earnings program for her – she feeds the dog and makes her bed, charts the progress on a weekly basis, and is then rewarded with a very modest amount of money on Sundays.
Still, this didn't feel effective and honest enough for me. I'd like her to learn the value of human accomplishment without attaching a sticker price to it; I'd like her to understand that money might make the world go round, but we don't have to be chasing after it in circles to be happy. I've begun to look for alternative options – a back-to-basics approach, so to speak. Well, quite frankly, hard-working families with young children, living in areas featuring high cost of living and yet low wages, have to get creative sometimes. And I am working on that.
This is how
For starters, I've reached an agreement with my daughter's Montessori school where she will be attending private Kindergarten in the Fall. In exchange for free tuition, I will clean and disinfect the school once a week – a win-win for me, since I've wanted to get in there and scrub away from day one when I saw little fingerprints covering every surface.
I also began to give away my children's gently used clothing; it worked like a charm. Our daughter outgrew girly clothes at an incredible pace, so I'd pass those items on to friends with younger girls and, in return, get the used items from their older brothers – which was perfect, because we also have a little son who is growing like a weed. Did I mention that everyone wins here?
Further, just to experiment, I began growing more of my own food last year – a process that has not only been therapeutic for me and provided a great learning experience for and bonding moments with my daughter, but that has also turned into a community-building tool. Neighbors would stop by, pick up some lettuce, rhubarb, chives, strawberries, sour cherries, hang out to chat and be … neighborly. And a few days later, they'd return with some yummy homegrown zucchini, bright apples, homemade pie – the stuff you really can't buy for money. I was ecstatic and can't wait to expand on this natural community experience this year. It benefits everyone involved.
Once in a while, I will translate documents into Spanish for acquaintances and then find myself rewarded with the most amazing home-cooked meals and hospitality on their part. Their papers are in order; I get to hang at their comfy homes and eat food I love and will not ever be able to cook myself, and in the process, we all get to know each other better. Win-win, like I said.
I am currently diversifying my endeavors. In exchange for some awesome haircuts (featuring belly-laughter entertainment and bubbly drinks on the side) by my gay and extremely talented neighbor hair stylist, I watched his house and took care of all his pets when he went out of town. Bottom line: happy dogs, happy cats, happy fish, happy neighbor – and very, very happy hair on my part.
Clearly, this all takes time, a dose of thinking outside the box, and, importantly, human connections. But once you get into the habit of looking at things from a non-fiscal angle, you will realize that everyone has something to offer to a friend, neighbor, the community. Take it one step at a time. I am dreaming of taking guitar lessons one of these days (when my son isn't so busy outgrowing his clothes, and when my daughter can independently take care of our gardening projects without hitting everyone up for a private donation); and I am sure I can find something to offer the teacher in exchange. We're getting pretty smart about this kind of system in our corner of the world, by the way. Community-based trades and exchanges are back in fashion – check out the Fourth Corner Exchange as food for thought.
These days, our neighbors don't talk so much about job security or overtime. They ask how the cherries are coming along and whether we have any clothes size 2T collecting dust. Now, if I could only get the health insurance company to offer me my monthly policy in exchange for home-baked cookies (I mean, really, you can't estimate the financial value of those, come on!), I would be set for life. I am happy to report, though, that my daughter asked me this morning if we could take some lettuce from our garden to the elderly couple next door … because it would make them smile.
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First tendencies in my community are making me hopeful that it will, Gypsy Willow. Thanks for the note!
Wonderful, great, important and timely idea! Going back to basics can truly empower one. Hope this idea catches on like wildfire. Great hub.
Ausgezeichnet, Zollstock! It soulds like your experiments have brought some real rewards. Lettuce can, indeed, bring smiles.
Peggy W, I think times like these call for practical, real-life approaches. Incidentally, this mirrors neighborhood exchanges I witnessed during my own childhood in Germany. I don't know when and how we got away from trading favors and services in small communities, but I'd sure like my kids to experience this while growing up as well, not just for the tangible benefits. Thanks for the feedback!
Rochelle, Vielen Dank! ;-) The rewards are numerous. My daughter, of course, has found an additional motive: giving away the lettuce means she won't have to eat so much of it - she has more trouble parting with the strawberries. LOL.
I think this is genius! I firmly believe that life is all about human connection and relationships : ) Great thinking! Im going to have to try some of your methods while I'm home for the summer!
Why, thank you, cjcarter! I simply started out giving things away or volunteering my time .... and these actions just snowballed. Wishing you luck with your endeavours this summer, fellow community-builder ;-)
It seems like the artificially valued dollar gives us a factory like mentality. The more we work, the more we get,... er, sort of. Because there's a minimum wage, in this conveyor belt society, we devalue the ability to cook, or clean as in your case, (an ingenious and double positive solution with the school by the way), do maintenance work and other things that are of value. If monetary worth didn't distort the value of counselors, teachers, farm hands and other "menial" jobs, money wouldn't be so bad.
This makes me think about the symbiotic relationships that are formed between two needy individuals when it comes to being green. Like the owner of an old diesel car and a restaurant that has to pay to get their grease hauled away. The diesel driver takes some of the grease off the restaurant's hands, and the diesel guy gets free fuel.
Or the "open source" mentality of programmers who make their code available to anyone, so they can improve the original program and thanks to the open code, others can verify it and refine it as well. The programmers make money off of side services associated with their programming efforts. It's all honest and everyone benefits.
I don't think money is evil, but it is easily abusable, and you have found a great way to get around it. Helping others this way is also tax free.
Alexander Mark, You raise a good point: We've somehow decided whose time is worth a lot, and whose isn't. I can't wrap my head around the fact that accountants make more than teachers, for example; this skewed pay scale creates an artificial socioeconomic ladder that is hard to climb for many. And I hadn't even considered that flat-out exchange takes taxes out of the equation … hmmmm. In closing, I'd have to agree that money as a concept isn't “evil” – but in my opinion, it can do a lot of damage to human relationships and value systems.
What a delightful hub. You got my geers spinning. It does take planning and steps, but it sounds so well worth it in the end. Fantastic topic.
Thanks for that positive feedback, Frieda! I was just visiting your hubs -- talk about making the reader's wheels spin. A true pleasure to meet you virtually.
Wow, this is brilliant! More people should be doing this kind of stuff! The global recession might have forced this on some people a little bit, in a small way perhaps, but this is how every community should behave. Unfortunately we all seem to be caught up thinking of ourselves most of the time. You are right, all it takes is a little thinking outside the box and human connections, not being afraid to introduce yourselves to the neighbours.
marcofratelli -- If we can push ourselves just a little to overcome that human selfishness and to reach out, then, IMHO, things will fall into place. Sometimes, positive results can come of adversarial conditions, such a recession -- let's hope people find their sense of community again as a result of the current one. Your thoughtful response is so appreciated - thanks!
What a great hub! If the economy gets much worse, we will have no other options. It would not take much for the card house to collapse. The barter system is a wonderful thing. Used goods are in demand (I run a large thrift store). I have also been determined to grow my own food, but come time to start my garden, I found myself too late and exhausted from chasing greenbacks this year.
That was a fun read and you've made me consider enlarging my vegie patch.
Paper Moon -- We may have underestimated the community-building and financial benefits of bartering. I am all about doing things that work - and this approach has proven itself time and time again. I take it your thrift store is doing well then? And as for gardening .... we started small and have expanded just a wee bit every year. Maybe a window box? ;-)
Jewels -- Thanks! And please do ... it's not just the harvest that makes it so worthwhile but also the process of watching something grow.
Gypsy Willow Level 5 Commenter 2 years ago
Great idea. Means so much more than a handful of cash. Hope it catches on.