Money & me (living on a budget)
NOT a love story.
My relationship with money started when my age was a single digit and I used to steal from my mom’s wallet, because I needed to buy stickers for my collection, I NEEDED them. My older sister was doing the same for mangas, so it was a first come-first served deal. Then, at the church, we would have something to tell the priest during confession of sins. Ten holy maries and you’re as good as new! Ten holy maries for that cheetah sticker that was missing in my book, that’s pretty convenient.
After that, there’s a little memory gap and next thing I remember is stealing from my mom’s wallet to buy alcohol and cigarettes.
My relationship with money was overall pretty sane. At a certain point, though, money became pure power, and I started notice how it holds literally everyone by the balls. Life is all a pathetic carousel running around money. They are all in, singing together “money don’t buy happiness — we buy happiness, with money”. What my little brother learnt from this is that money is the most worthy thing ever, together with making music —making music with the goal of making money.
It’s clearly God: it decides everything about your life, what you’re doing how and with who, therefore I feel massively god-fearing and I don’t like to have more than just enough. I’m afraid that money will change something inside of me because I saw many decent people going completely INSANE. In 2015 I’ve met a girl: gorgeus, elegant and smart. She happened to basically become a prostitute because someone else convinced her that she needed it — for money, of course. It’s a sick and long story and I feel sorry enough not to give more details about what happened there... but she was living in a stunning apartment in one of the most beautiful cities on Earth and she was getting around with business class tickets and whatever ridicusly expensive clothes she could have. But it was fucking easy to break her and see her crying and she was always on defense mode. Money don’t buy happiness, we buy happiness, with money! That’s what society sneakily taught us, but I don’t fall in this trap. I got to know that girl through the person who conviced her to start that, of course she was not the only one manipulated like that, and I guess I didn’t have the same brainwash from him because I’m not that sexy. Soon I ran away from both of them.
After seeing that sickness right before my eyes I decided to completely refuse the presence of money. I gave almost everything away, I left my job, my apartment and I started travelling on a budget. My parents claimed to be ready to catch me if I fell, but falling was not an option.
That was in March 2016. Almost a year later, in January 2017, I’m typing this in the livingroom of a cosy alaskan hostel, where I work a few hours a day for free accomodation. I’ve never stop since then, and the idea is not tempting.
Wait for the second part of this story — it will be all about travelling on a budget. (second part now published)
