He saw his parents’ paystubs, and it lent a level of resignation. The knowledge that there was no money made him feel insecure. He was afraid to express his needs
“I
s it true that we’re rich?”
Adina Meyer posed this question to her mother when she was in eighth grade. Her classmate had blurted a comment about the Meyers being well off, and Adina was shocked. Her family lived in a regular house and led a similar lifestyle to that of her friends. She never got extravagant gifts or went on exotic vacations. They were normal, just like everyone else.
The Meyers were, in fact, exceptionally wealthy. Her father was a business tycoon, a multimillionaire who supported countless families and organizations. But Adina had no clue about this reality. Her parents didn’t revere money and didn’t want their children to feel superior to their peers. The children’s needs were met, but money wasn’t a conversation piece.
By default, parents refer back to their own childhoods when choosing how to convey financial attitudes to their children. Chavi shares that neither she nor her husband come from affluent backgrounds, but their upbringings were different. Chavi was aware that her parents weren’t wealthy. She wore hand-me-downs and actually developed a pride in her non-neediness. She was never privy to specific details of her parents’ finances and was always allowed the opportunity to express her wants. Sometimes they were granted, sometimes denied, but she could always ask.
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