A couple thousand years ago a very wise person wrote what we now call the Book of Ecclesiastes. This author had an unusual - almost negative - point of view. Everything is meaningless - except for our quest to live like and eventually join our creator! Interspersed with all of this negative talk are some ageless tidbits of wisdom.
Here is an excerpt that struck me this morning:
"The words of a wise man's mouth are gracious; but the lips of a fool will swallow up himself.
The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness: and the end of his talk is mischievous madness.
A fool also is full of words: a man cannot tell what shall be; and what shall be after him, who can tell him?
The labour of the foolish wearieth every one of them, because he knoweth not how to go to the city.
Woe to thee, O land, when thy king is a child, and thy princes eat in the morning!
Blessed art thou, O land, when thy king is the son of nobles, and thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness!
By much slothfulness the building decayeth; and through idleness of the hands the house droppeth through.
A feast is made for laughter, and wine maketh merry: but money answereth all things." Ecclesiastes 10: 12-19
The notion that hard work and saving your money will make your life better are hardly new to those of us so fortunate to be alive in this century!
Now, fast forward to a mere 2 Hundred years ago - in a writing about Benjamin Franklin and his Poor Richard's Almanac:
"Judge, then, how much I must have been gratified by an incident I am going to relate to you. I stopped my horse lately where a great number of people were collected at a vendue of merchant's goods. The hour of sale not being come, they were conversing on the badness of the times; and one of the company called to a plain, clean old man with white locks, "Pray, Father Abraham, what think you of the times? Won't these heavy taxes quite ruin the country? How shall we ever be able to pay them? What would you advise us to do?" Father Abraham stood up and replied: "If you would have my advice, I will give it you in short; for A word to the wise is enough, and Many words won't fill a bushel, as Poor Richard says." They all joined, desiring him to speak his mind, and gathering round him, he proceeded as follows:
Friends, says he, and neighbors, the taxes are indeed very heavy, and if those laid on by the government were the only ones we had to pay, we might the more easily discharge them; but we have many others, and much more grievous to some of us. We are taxed twice as much by our idleness, three times as much by our pride and four times as much by our folly; and from these taxes the commissioners cannot ease or deliver us, by allowing an abatement. However, let us hearken to good advice, and something may be done for us; God helps them that help themselves, as Poor Richard says in his Almanac of 1733.
It would be thought a hard government that should tax its people one-tenth part of their TIME, to be employed in its service, but idleness taxes many of us much more, if we reckon all that is spent in absolute sloth, or doing of nothing, with that which is spent in idle employments or amusements that amount to nothing. Sloth, by bringing on disease, absolutely shortens life. Sloth, like rust, consumes faster than labor wears; while the used key is always bright, as Poor Richard says. But dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that's the stuff life is made of, as Poor Richard says."
Here's hoping we can somehow share with our most cherished little loved ones the habits of working hard and saving money. Habits learned at an early age are much more likely to help our children throughout their lives. Hopefully long, healthy and flourishing lives!
Maybe if they see us working hard and going to the bank to deposit a little money each week. Maybe - if we teach them to start saving money at an early age then their precious little lives will be just a little bit easier!
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