Twist Response

Money seems to always have its way of complicating everything in this life. Prior to reading The Soul of Money, I hadn’t considered much that money doesn’t have malicious intent and therefore it isn’t entirely fair to be angry with money itself. However, Twist’s perspective sheds light on how we as humans created and gave such high value to money. My relationship with money growing up compared to my present situation are in many ways very similar. Growing up in a middle class household in a family of seven didn’t come with a lot of luxuries. I got hand-me-down clothes, books, and bedrooms, spending money wasn’t something we could afford on flighty things or non-essentials. Our parents were semi-transparent with us about our money situation, basically we just knew there wasn’t enough of it. Aside from temporary power outages, never did I ever go without the things I needed. My parents loved me, supported me, and afforded me opportunities they didn’t necessarily have the money for, like an education. Now, their financial situation is drastically better than it was even five years ago, let alone when I young. I feel like the most important lesson they taught me about money is to be smart about it. My relationship with money today is similar to the struggles we had when I was growing up. Living alone and on my own is not a great way to be a saver, but working hard is an effective way to pay for it. I mostly try and do my best when it comes to saving for a special occasion or treat for myself or my home. But I carefully calculate exactly how much food I will need from my paycheck, how much of that is needed for living costs, and what can be saved. I’ve always viewed money as a necessary evil, something I needed for everything from staying alive to being successful.

I found Twist’s novel to be very inspiring and powerful. It is extremely freeing to consider my own value as more than what my bank account reflects. Her insights into what value money has and how it can deeply affect a person make so much sense to me from everything I have learned from this sector. I loved her comments about how “poor people” are poor “only by their circumstances.” This is incredibly powerful in the same way for “the rich,” how these individuals are merely valued by their net worth and not at all by their character. I work full-time as a front office manager for a hotel downtown and I couldn’t find this to be more accurate. Entitled, wealthy people can sometimes have the nastiest attitudes of anyone I have ever spoken to. It is amazing to me how something like money can alter a person in such a way to make them forget what it is like to interact with other humans. Twist states that our culture is so money hungry and every day is “what did I get done?” This statement can be a difficult one to come to terms with for me. It has me considering our purpose of being here on this planet, what should we be getting done? Whose lives were we meant to touch and what must we accomplish before reaching for these aspirations? For Twist, she emphasizes being well-rounded, well-minded and spiritual. Connecting yourself with being spiritual can be challenging for some, but I can only imagine how liberating it must feel to recognize things larger than yourself. Her musical chairs metaphor was unfortunately accurate and unsettling. We play the game of money and “success” like children fighting tooth and nail over who will end up on top: the more the game progresses, the more violent and malicious it becomes. She continues with her story about the “you or me” versus “you and me” paradigm. Should we shift our path away from excluding others in the miracle of wealth and instead invite them in earning success with us, we may free ourselves from a terrible burden. The anchor of wanting and insufficiency weighing all of us down is not innate or biologically sewn into our genes in the same way that people are not born racist. Racism and social prejudice are taught and these are fears which are passed on and learned by our children and future generations. Twist during her lecture stated that we are brainwashed to want more and attain more, but foregoing these desires frees up all that pent up energy to cherish the things you already have. A cheesy comparison I make with this comes from the story Christmas story “The Gift of the Magi” where a man and woman sell their most precious possession to afford a gift for the other, only to realize that the gifts had been rendered useless because of what they chose to give up. This reaffirms their love to be priceless, rare, and more valuable than any gift. When we give up our desire to have the next new thing or things which will help us fit in better, we might find in ourselves and in each other the power of what we already have. This ungrateful mindset has proven itself to be toxic for people and relationships. Twist even mentioned how fighting in your own marriage about money can lead to divorce, which is extremely common and “normal.” For others, this can jeopardize your relationships with friends and also your faith. By abandoning the mindset of insufficiency, we are able to love and be grateful for what we already have.

Within the nonprofit sector, we learn that people who volunteer or give tend to be happier and in some cases live longer than others. I believe that Twist’s theory of cherishing what you already have is an important step for people to love themselves and their communities more. This type of behavior can change a person and fill them with more positive attitude. Sufficiency and understanding what our needs are as humans is important to grasp within this sector. It is easy to preach that you want to help when you are continuously in search of the next thing that you need. As philanthropists, we find our purpose in life with loving and appreciating the things we already have, while searching for ways to give back and assist others achieve the same. The roof over my head is something I am grateful for and something I desire for all to have. The safety and security I feel is something I am eager to provide for others. This novel has lead me to consider much about the things I own and how it really is within my duties in this sector to do the best I can to give it back. I choose to be a part of the change for this world and it all begins with acknowledging my own sufficiency.