Inculcating a Habit

 New Year(s) come with diaries, banks and hospitals often distribute them. So every new year we have at least five to six diaries at my place waiting to be used. Each and every member of my family gets a new diary during the new year. Often, the craze of diary continues for a week, utmost for a month....the diary later gets forgotten only to be discovered during the Diwali cleaning! 

Diaries are used for various purposes, say some people write their personal experiences while some pen down their brain child whereas few prefer diary for maintaining their schedule and in some cases people jot down their daily expenses. 

One of the best habits that my father possesses is writing down his daily expenses in his diary. If I try to remember the farthest, I have seen him almost every night writing his daily expenses. So, he has a detailed account of every penny he spent. By year end, he is the only one who has gained the optimum benefit of the diary. 

I remember, once I dared to peep in his diary while he was writing his expenses. He had accounted right form a Cadbury to a dinner EVERYTHING ! A few days latter while I was talking to my mother I absently commented poorly on the accountancy of the Cadbury. 

"Suhani, you are adulting. As a teenager you would want to disburse on jewelry, clothes, brunch, movies and many other things! All these things are very attractive and you'll always want more and more of it....the result would be, you'll end up spending whatever you will have had earned. Your father writes expenses not because he is money minded but because he wishes to spend his hard earned money judiciously. Unwanted spending add to our cravings for wanting more and more fancy things. Analyzing expenses is very important in life! You'll come across many people who squander money and then end up with no savings. It is very important to spend diligently so, when you are in need you may benefit from those investments! You should respect what you have earned and keep and account of it. In no ways do I mean that you mustn't expend on clothes and movies and curtail yourself from enjoyment but, one must have a control over it. And you'll achieve this supreme authority over yourself only by learning to economize, as everyday you'll have a reality check of what you have disbursed!" was my mother's reply. 

That day I had a reality check. I pondered over this for a little while and now I try too keep account of every penny I spend! A habit that I am trying to inculcate!