Only those things which pay back well are trusted

Today, my slippers got torn off and I took them to a cobbler. The cobbler was an old man, aged around 75 years. His wife was stitching her slippers which had been torn off many times. The old man asked his wife "Did you have lunch?", to which the wife replied "No". The old man takes a 50 Rs note, gives it to his wife and asks her to have lunch. She replies "No. I don't want your money. You keep it. I know how to survive", and continues to stitch her slippers. The old man then collects my slipper and checks its size. He attempts to stitch it and then gives it to his wife saying that his hands are hurting. She stitched my slippers and gave it back to him. She then continues to stitch her own slippers.

These moments went very deep into me. I paid 100 Rs to the old man and asked him to keep the change. He refused stubbornly and after a long search in his workplace, gave me back my 50 Rs change. After thanking both of them, I turned back disappointed looking at his wife stitching her slippers. And then, the old man says to his wife "Now this money is earned by you. This is your money. Go and have your lunch". Love has no age. Love knows no currency. Love finds no boundaries. I envy this old couple! Made my day! Even a billion dollars cannot buy this feeling and love.

Joseph Heller wrote the massive bestseller, Catch-22 about World War II. I recommend anyone read the book but that's not what this answer is about. Later in his life Heller went to a party in the Hamptons. Mostly young hedge fund guys at the party. While he was at the party, someone came up to him and pointed out some 25 year old guy. "You see that guy over there?" the someone said. "That guy made more money last year than all of your books will make in your entire lifetime, times ten." Joseph Heller looked at the 25 year old guy then said. "But I have one thing that that man will never have." His friend gave a sort of scoff and said, "What could that possibly be?" And Joseph Heller said, "Enough."

I used to say “If you think money can’t buy happiness, then you just don’t know where to shop”. But as I get older, I realize that the richest people in the world are often the most unhappy. I still recall when I was broke and very happy and now that I have money, I try to remain focused on what makes life really worth living… and for me that is friends and family. Money can buy sex, not love. Money can buy medicine, not health. Money can buy a house, not a home. Money can buy books, not knowledge, and experience. Money can buy someone’s services, but not their loyalty. Money can buy designer clothes and make-up, but not inner beauty. Money can buy expensive watches, but not time. True friends. Real happiness.

Simple things like not looking at price tags or seeing the price of the dishes on the menu means a lot, especially when you come from middle class families. It gets you better things, better clothes, better seats, better treatments, better everything. If one was a philosopher, one would argue that you’ll still experience heartbreaks or deaths even if you have more money. True. But they fail to mention all the other days when you can drive in better cars, can afford better places, better travel, better lifestyle. Not to mention the sheer respect having more money brings out from the people around you (yes, that’s how the world works). Personally for me. It means freedom.

I can afford a fantastic and spacious place, buy expensive gifts for my close ones, have all the financial independence in the world, and make my own choices. If you’re chasing your passion and making lots of money, everyone around is kinda proud that you’re doing something different. 3-years ago when I used to tell people that I want to pursue a career in writing, 90% of people used to tell me about the struggles and it being a career suicide and that I’m throwing away my early 20s. None of those relatives speak anything bad about my career choice anymore. They’re in fact proud.

I’m pretty sure none of them has ever read anything that I have written, yet they wanted to impart “advice” about my writing career. But once they saw the money, they love it. Seen it first hand. Money does buy happiness. It was morning. I had just finished a one-hour intense yoga session, and I relaxed in Shavasana yoga posture. Sometimes I have a habit of getting into deep meditativeness in Shavasana. On that particular day, I was enjoying such a state. It was a blissful experience, and suddenly my phone started ringing.

I came out of my meditation and looked at the phone. It was one of my close friends who stayed in Hyderabad. When I received the call, he immediately started the conversation with a big apology. He started explaining some difficult situations about his cousin, who is one of the well-known artists in the Telugu cinema industry. She has a good reputation in Tollywood and acted in a couple of Telugu movies. He told me that she started suffering from depression in recent times and attempted to take her life a few times.

With lots of difficulties, her family members are supporting her. She has a lot of money, respect, reputation, etc. But she is not happy in her life! Based on her story, can we say money doesn't buy happiness? I have a friend who doesn't take many responsibilities in life. He always gets fired wherever he works and always blames people for his failures. Luckily his wife works in a small firm and runs the family. I advised him to correct his mistakes, but he is careless and always watches some movies while sleeping on the couch.

His parents tested positive during the 2nd wave of Covid. They came from a middle-class family and didn't have more savings. All their savings were wiped out at the early stage of the treatment. My friend also didn't have money to continue the treatment. He managed the expenditure for a few days by selling some gold ornaments. But he was penniless after a few days, and he couldn't afford the treatment. He was even ashamed to ask friends for some help (I came to know this story later through a common friend) as we all advised long back to correct his attitude.

His parents passed away in the hospital, and he didn't get a chance to complete the last rites as per the process. He still regrets this incident in his life. His parents would have been alive today (medium probability) if he had some money, and he doesn't have to carry this regret. Based on his story, can we say money can buy happiness? Most people misunderstand the role of money in their life. Cheers!