For The Love Of Money ...

 

For The Love Of Money…

By

Vivek Hande

“Money is not everything. Make sure you earn a lot before talking any such nonsense”, famously attributed to Warren Buffet. I think he was spot on. But money needs to be carried, or does it? And if so it perhaps needs a wallet...

I do think I am old school. I feel incomplete and inadequate when I step out of home without my handkerchief, wallet and for the last decade or so my cell phone. My sons tell me I could very well do without the former two and all I need is the last item to exist comfortably.

I have grown up seeing many carry a wallet which was almost like a briefcase. It had photographs (black & white to colour) of the family including the grandchildren in different stages of growing up; it had a small address book with contact details of all deemed important and necessary to be contacted at short notice; it also carried the driving license and a folded photocopy of bank account details. It carried ones' visiting cards and those received from others. For good measure, there were a few photos of gods and deities for divine intervention at all times.  Oh yes, it did carry some cash too, less of billfolds/notes and more of coins threatening to burst out of the coin pouch… When I started carrying a wallet, some credit cards also did find their way into the slots.

Wallets have been around since ancient times. They have been documented in Mesopotamia, Ancient Greece and Egypt as a secure way to carry coins and jewellery. The Greeks used the Kibisis which had its origins as a magical sack given to Perseus to keep the head of Gorgon , Medusa after he killed her. The Kibisis typically used by the Greeks was made of leather and had a drawstring closure. The Romans used a small pouch called Bursa or Marsupun which had a small flap to close it. With commerce along the Silk Route, wallets became more intricate and decorative and were embellished with embroidery and gemstones. They came to be recognized as a statement of wealth or status.

Kibisis: Greek Origin Wallet

 

With the advent of paper currency, the conventional wallets as most of us know them came into existence. Bi-fold/ Tri-fold / wristlet wallets and zip around wallets became popular. As credit cards came into existence, RFID Blocking Wallets became popular. Ironically, the luxury branded wallets meant to keep money became wallet emptying commodities!!Hermes made a lot of money helping people spend money to store money. A wallet belonging to the second Earl of Yarmouth was auctioned for 58000 $ in 2000 and was probably the most expensive wallet sold (made of dyed silk and gold thread)..

A thick wallet with money and coins and everything else lent itself to a medical condition called Wallet Neuropathy or more popularly known as Fat Wallet Syndrome giving rise to sciatica and backache because of uneven pressure on pelvic muscles. It was best treated by reducing the size of the wallet by spending money on consultation fees.

Wallet Neuropathy Causing Sciatica

Wallets and paper currency may be less fashionable or not so popular today as we look at digital currency and modes of payments such as UPI; Global mobile and digital wallets and platforms such as GPay and ApplePay. Every conceivable transaction is possible through the smartphone which is expected to have a global penetration up to 75% by 2025. But the security layers notwithstanding, one does get spooked reading and getting to know of  the frauds and the scams and the rip offs each day.

For me, I am probably somewhere in between. Holding a crisp note, to me feels like holding a piece of the future, untouched and full of potential. Money is just paper, but it affects people like poetry and somehow it is more poetic when you feel the crisp notes in your wallet!! The wallet, at least, speaking for myself, will survive!!

 

Bring On The Poetry...