Balanced budget

Ma was always in charge of balancing budgets. As long as I remember she had this old tin biscuit box that she would keep envelopes of allocated cash for various expenses. Envelopes had her scraggly handwriting in Bengali, scribbles of dhobi, mashkabadi etc. 

She was meticulous about accounting for everything. Truly exercised opportunity cost. When we asked to buy something it was nearly always too expensive. She never thought a purchase was a “deal” just because it was cheaper than it was - for her it was always relative to something else we really needed and hence always too costly. It took me a long time to undo her training but I still think that getting a sticker shock is something I learned from her. 

Two days ago Didi sent me a mail saying she got a bill for Ma’s credit card. It was a credit of Rs. 42. She didn’t owe them a dime. 

She worried endlessly about money. As long as I recall and especially in her last few years she always worried about money. She told Didi in the hospital, Tushi ke bol, Ma ke dekheja. Tell Tushi to see Ma. Then muttered under her breath, Gada khorcha, too much expense. 

When I came back to see her second time in two weeks she was worried again about how much I had to spend. She worried about the money she had in her bank accounts and how they should be saved for her eventual medical needs. She pleaded us to use that money. It would have covered very little. But she wanted to contribute. 

She worried most about how much the hospital stay was costing us. Didi had her included as a dependent on her company sponsored insurance. Yet she was worried that the insurance wouldn’t cover enough and we would be left with the expenses out of pocket. The day she passed away the bill had reached Rs. 13 lakhs and some change. Didi’s insurance covered Rs. 13 lakhs and some change. We paid less than $200 or Rs 10k out of pocket. Even in death she made sure she balanced the budget.