Marriage Moats-Five Bucks
Published: Wed, 05/08/13
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 "That will be... er... um... five dollars." The lady behind the counter seemed chagrined to break the news to me. I handed over a wrinkled Lincoln. The twins and I had enjoyed the stack of books very much. The late fee did not muddy that. If the system were such that I paid up front for the privilege of reading, like with Amazon, it would have been a bargain. A steal. Today is the closing for refinancing our house, and if the cost turns out to be five dollars higher than planned, I will not blink. If the numbers are off by a hundred or a thousand it will still be small potatoes. Lowering our fixed rate will save us a week of grocery money every month until the girls are in college. Once when my daughter was a waitress she had a customer who complained about her bill. The woman had gone over the numbers and found a mistake. In no uncertain terms she demanded a refund. With a forced smile my daughter gave her back thirty four cents. The woman turned on her heels and left the cafe. If the librarian had demanded a thousand dollars, I would have resisted. If the mortgage company insists on an extra thirty four cents, I will wonder why they bothered. The money we shell out is held in proportion to the services we receive. Houses have bigger price tags than a sandwich or a late novel, and we allow for a larger margin of error. Marriage is where we live. It is what feeds us and gives us shelter. I have heard people balk at coughing up fifty bucks for a class or twenty for a book. Yet it seems odd to scrimp on what is the single most precious relationship of our life, while splurging on new boots. Photo by Jenny Stein
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