Weekend Talk: Penny wise, pound foolish
Tamale many years ago, I was in charge of customers’ savings accounts. Every week or so, there was this lanky man who came to the savings department and announced in Dagbani, “The small-money man has come!”
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Small-money man
The small-money man would hand his “small money” to me and say, “Put this small money in my account for me.” Week after week, he came to deposit small monies into his account.
One day when he came to the savings department, he didn’t have money to deposit; instead, he came to take something small from his account.
When I checked his balance, I realised that the small-money man had a substantial balance in his account, thanks to the little drops of cedis he put in week after week.
In the bank, there were some staff whose accounts held next to nothing despite receiving hefty salaries, because they had not learnt the value of “pennies” as opposed to their “pounds”.
So I remembered the old saying, “Penny wise, pound foolish,” credited to author Robert Burton. My co-workers’ pounds fooled them while the small-money man’s “pennies” made him wise.
Life skill
The apostle Paul had a helpful principle, whether he had pennies or pounds. He said, I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learnt the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want (Philippians 4:12).
It is a useful life skill to know how to live with “pennies” and how to live with “pounds”, remembering that “pounds” (abundance) can mislead, while “pennies” (scarcity) can make us wise.
This means that if our funds are down to pennies, we are more careful and economical on expenditure than when we think we have a lot of resources, which makes us profligate and reckless.
Have you noticed how individuals, entities, or even the government go on a spending spree when money is received through profits, grants, taxes or loans? So “penny wise, pound foolish” describes how prudent we are in the face of abundance and scarcity.
Deprived and lowly
Penny represents deprivation and lowliness, while pound represents wealth and abundance. However, deprivation does not necessarily produce lowliness, for there are poor people who are rather proud.
Neither does wealth necessarily produce pride, for there are wealthy people who are humble.
However, deprivation is prone to give birth to humility while wealth often deceives us into pride. Therefore, “penny wise, pound foolish” warns that if we are deprived, we should be wise enough not to let our lowly condition make us bitter.
A man called Agur, realising the dicey situation between deprivation and abundance, prayed to God: Give me neither poverty nor riches; but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonour the name of my God (Proverbs 30:8, 9).
Leaning on God
The less endowed naturally lean towards God because they know only God can help them; while the opulent move away from God because they think they don’t need him.
When missionaries arrived in developing countries where people lived in humble communities, the people’s hearts were open to receive the good news of the gospel. On the contrary, in highly developed societies where people lived in material comfort, people turned away from the good news.
We may be penniless, but we should be wise enough to recognise and accept the good news of Christ that points to eternal life. For situation that turns us away from God, including materialism, has blindfolded us.
Pound is foolish because those who have a lot of it get so busy that they forget God. Acquiring wealth is like drinking sea water; the more you drink, the thirstier you get. Wealth does not satisfy, neither does it quench the thirst for more.
Therefore, penny promotes contentment when you manage with the little you have, while pound promotes greed and avarice.
Pound owns over 120 pairs of shoes, some of which she has never used for years; while penny gets by with just a few shoes at her disposal, which she manages well.
Here, pound’s foolishness is identified by the sheer absurdity of amassing those perishable footwear. The same applies to clothes, kitchen wares and other household gadgets that never get used.
On this journey
Penny travels light and relaxed, while pound is always overweight with excessive baggage. When you watch penny’s relaxation and pound’s stress on this journey of life, you understand why penny is wise and pound is foolish.
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In the end, the adage may not be about money but about our attitude and behaviours.
The writer is a publisher, author, writer-trainer and CEO of Step Publishers.
E-mail: [email protected]