Ants & Money

Go to the ant, you sluggard
consider its ways and be wise!
It has no commander,
no overseer or ruler,
yet it stores its provisions in summer
and gathers its food at harvest.
Proverbs 6:6-8

So here I am at the age of twenty-seven. I've been working at my current job for six years now and what do I have to show for it? Maybe a few thousand in RRSPs and a van. I have dreams of family and kids and a vague plan to own a house but I have little invested towards these goals.

In years past, this was not a concern for me. Even though my parents would mention the topic variously over the years, I would say that they had a good point about saving money whilst I continued on my merry way. Ostensibly, I preferred to spend my money on my friends in an effort to build relationships and perhaps mentor a few young guys. There's nothing wrong with that, right? And if I spend money on a date with my sister or pizza with my brother then so much the better.

Last year, I started to donate money somewhat regularly to the Take It or Leave It program at my church. I saw how well they spent my money and how they stretched every dollar that I donated so I kept doing it. I even toyed with the idea of giving the equivalent of my tithe once a month to this program. That's pretty altruistic, isn't it?

And yet, what is my plan for my future family? To live in an apartment or townhouse because I was too lazy to save more money? If I actually had children, I would never consider spending money on my friends rather than care for the needs of my kids first but here I stand, having done just that. In my dad's words, I am robbing my family.

I could take that a little further, perhaps. One of my main "expenses" is my tithe, the expected ten percent of my gross pay. I have always paid this faithfully, ever since I had a paper route as a tweener and just as my parents taught me. My dad has been reviewing the necessity of tithing (heresy!) and whether or not it's really required, despite what he taught me. His latest idea is that if you tithe ten percent then you should also put the same amount into a savings account for the sake of your family, whether or not you have a family yet. It's something to consider, I s'pose.

My conclusion was never that saving is bad or that I shouldn't do it. I have always agreed that saving is good and necessary, I have just never done it. This year, I hope to change that and save a pretty good chunk of my gross income. I'm already making good progress towards that goal without killing my "doodad" expenses but we'll see how that goes. At minimum, I would caution my younger friends not to make the same mistake I made and have so little to offer your family in the future.

After all, I suppose it is better to be an ant than a slug.