MOTHER KNOWS BEST! – Kaieteur News

(Kaieteur News) – There was a time when a young man receiving his first pay packet did not suddenly transform himself into an international financial expert. He did not rush to buy expensive sneakers, upgrade his cellphone, or begin offering investment advice to people twice his age.

In those days, when payday came around, the first stop was not the rum shop, the betting shop, or the latest gadget store. The first stop was home, where Mother sat waiting with the calm confidence of a person who already knew where the money belonged.

The tradition was simple and widely understood. A son handed over his first salary to his mother, and in many households, he continued doing so for years afterward.

Nobody questioned the custom. The only people who complained were young men who suddenly discovered that earning money and controlling money were two entirely different things.

Back then, mothers were the original banks. They accepted deposits, offered financial advice, provided emergency loans, and somehow managed to keep households running on budgets that would make modern economists break into a cold sweat.

The difference was that mothers charged no service fees. They only charged disappointment whenever you behaved foolishly.

A young fellow would receive his wages on Friday and immediately begin making plans. By Saturday morning, he had already allocated money for rum, cricket, girlfriends, fancy shirts, and enough unnecessary spending to bankrupt a small nation.

Then Mother would enter the discussion. And unlike Parliament, there was usually no opposition strong enough to challenge her budget proposals.

One young man I knew decided that after handing over his first salary, he would modernise the arrangement. He convinced himself that he was now a mature adult capable of managing his own affairs.

The confidence was impressive. The evidence supporting that confidence was entirely absent.

The second pay day arrived. He carefully counted out what he considered his fair contribution to the household and placed the rest safely in his pocket.

By “safely,” he meant safely available for immediate destruction.

Instead of going straight home, he and the boys launched a major economic stimulus package at the nearest corner shop. Large quantities of rum were consumed in support of local commerce and national development.

Several bottles later, everyone at the shop had become an expert on politics, cricket, foreign affairs and world economics. This miraculous transformation lasted until closing time.

Fortunately, he had protected his mother’s share from the festivities. Even in a rum-induced state of confusion, he understood that some traditions were too dangerous to ignore.

When he finally arrived home, his food was waiting on the table. Mothers possess a remarkable ability to feed foolish children while simultaneously planning appropriate punishment for them.

He proudly handed over the money. His mother counted it once, counted it twice, and then looked at him with the expression mothers reserve for moments of great disappointment. “What happen son, they short pay you this week?” she asked.

Mothers have a special talent for asking simple questions that feel like cross-examinations before an international tribunal. A single raised eyebrow from a mother can accomplish what an entire police investigation cannot.

The young man explained that he had decided to keep part of his earnings for himself. He wisely omitted details concerning the contribution he had already made to the rum industry.

His mother simply nodded. She did not argue, complain, lecture, threaten, or deliver one of those speeches that begin with “When I was your age.”

That silence turned out to be far more powerful.

Years passed. Every week he handed over money to his mother, and every week she accepted it without fuss or complaint.

Whenever he received overtime pay, she received a little extra. Whenever Christmas came around, she was remembered with gifts and special treats.

The young man felt proud of himself. Like many young people, he believed he was the chief architect of his own success.

Youth has a way of producing confidence long before it produces wisdom. It is one of nature’s favourite practical jokes.

Then one day, love arrived. A beautiful woman entered his life, and suddenly the fellow who once spent money freely began speaking about responsibility, savings, and long-term planning.

Marriage has that effect. It converts reckless spenders into amateur accountants almost overnight.

As the wedding approached, reality began delivering invoices. Every discussion about flowers, food, clothing, decorations and furniture seemed designed to separate him from his money at record speed.

A few days before the wedding, he carried his usual contribution to his mother. To his surprise, she refused to accept it.

Instead, she took his hands and told him that from now on his money belonged with his future wife. Then she handed him a bankbook.

At first, he did not understand. Then he opened it.

The balance staring back at him nearly caused a family emergency. He was convinced there had to be some mistake.

There was no mistake.

Every cent he had given his mother over the years had been saved. Not spent, not borrowed, not touched, and not quietly redirected into household expenses. Saved.

The money had been waiting for him all along. While he thought he was helping support the household, his mother had been building a foundation for his future.

At that moment he learned a lesson that no school, university, or financial seminar could ever teach. He learned that wisdom often disguises itself as old-fashioned tradition.

For years he had believed that he was the clever one. Yet his mother had been planning decades ahead while he was busy planning weekends.

Today many young people insist on complete financial independence from the first day they begin working. Yet some of them cannot explain where their salaries disappeared by the middle of the month.

Meanwhile, mothers continue doing what mothers have always done. They continue sacrificing, planning, worrying, and preparing for futures their children cannot yet see.

That is why I still smile whenever I hear about a son giving part of his earnings to his mother. It is not merely a transfer of money. It is an expression of gratitude. It is a sign of trust, respect and appreciation for the person who invested in him long before he ever earned a dollar.

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.)