In 8th grade, there was this hype about wearing flashy, overly priced clothes. I think at some point, we all go through this phase. That one moment when all your friends are wearing brand names like Abercrombie & Fitch, Hollister, American Eagle, Levi’s...you get my point. 

And these pieces of cloth are ridiculously expensive. But, I’m in 8th grade, and it doesn’t help how all my friends made fun of me for my clothes, so I begged my mom to go and buy some. She was really nice about it. She wanted to make sure I didn’t feel left out, but she made it clear - watch for the sales and think about whether it’s a reasonable price. 

So during Christmas, when everything was discounted super cheap, we’d go out and grab stuff in the clearance bin for $10 or less. But at one point, I stopped caring about the clothes. I started to notice that my mom would work more and more. She’d come home after 14 hour days at 2 or 3 am in the morning, and I’d still be up doing homework, rushing downstairs to eat dinner with her. 

I always had this feeling that she was working more because she loved her job, and the store she worked at was open 24 hours. But then one day we got in a fight, and she pointed out how dense and spoiled I was. How everything I wanted, I would eventually get, but I didn’t realize that it meant she was spending more and more time trying to earn more money instead of staying at home. 

Ever since that day, I’ve carried this huge guilt. I hate spending money. I stopped asking for things, and I would just be content with window shopping and looking at the latest deals online. 

Christmas of 2008, we all went to the Houston Premium Outlets just to get out of the house and to buy some fancy clothes for my brother’s orchestra recital. Somehow, we found ourselves in a Levi’s store, and I found a 29 x 32 pair of gray jeans. Now if you’ve never seen me pre-2020, I was a twig. I had to special order my waist size of 28 or 29 online from American Eagles, and it was really tough to find a length of 32. People in school always made fun of me for having pants that were either too baggy or too short, revealing my socks. 

So like any 8th grader, I was always trying to find a super deal on jeans that fit. When I finally found the pair at Levi’s, I mentioned it to my mom, just to say something, but I saw the price tag - $36.99. My heart sank, because I knew my budget was $15 (it’s still $15 to this day by the way). My mom must’ve seen the look on my face and heard the tone of my voice because she encouraged me to just go try it on. See how it fits. 

Well I did just for the fun of it, and it fit perfectly. Undeniably, the best pair of jeans that I have ever owned. But I didn’t say anything, and put it back on the shelf because I knew it was too much. My mom saw me empty-handed and asked me how it fit and if I liked it. I told her how great they were, but that it’s too expensive, and that I could wait until it goes on sale. 

But my mom is amazing. She knew how much jeans meant to me and how many pairs we’ve tried on in the past, so when I told her how well they fit, she told me to go try it on again and show her. I mean, these jeans looked great on a lanky asian twig. 

My mom ended up telling me, “it’s okay con, you should spend the money if it’s really worth it. If you feel like you really like it, then don’t wait. Just get it.” Internally conflicted, I kept debating all the way until we were up at the register. But, my mom pushed hard, telling me that it was okay, if it made me happy, even for the slightest bit, it was worth it. 

So long story short, she bought me those jeans. I learned an important lesson on understanding the value of things. 12 years later, I realized my mom was teaching me how to be frugal, not cheap. A crucial point in my journey to building wealth.

I still own those jeans today. I wore them every week for 11 years. The past year I haven’t worn them because unfortunately my gut decided it would take up some extra real estate around my waistline and putting them on prevents me from breathing. But I’m the sentimental type. I keep those jeans because it reminds me of that day. It reminds me of spending on things that are valuable, and it reminds me of how much my mom loves me. 

So this one goes to you mom. You really are the best. 

Love forever and always, 

Nick 

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