The art of saving money for a rainy day

Aside from kundiman songs, I also grew up listening to Perry Como’s Catch a Falling Star. The chorus of the song goes like: “Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket, never let it fade away. Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket, save it for a rainy day.” As a six-year-old boy growing up in a barrio, the song, of course, did not have any romantic meaning to me. Early on, my parents who were farmers taught me that the song was all about saving money for the future. Born to want, I capitalized on the song as my first ever mantra on financial literacy. 

Fortunate is the man who finds the job of his desire. But more fortunate is he who is able to save from his earnings. Financial literacy is a subject matter that should not only be mastered by successful men and women  it should also be learned by children at an early age.

After all, the art of saving money is both a discipline and a blessing. Once saving money is instilled in one’s consciousness, one is somehow assured of a comfortable life in the future. It may not be a life of luxury  who knows  but that is a sliver of prosperity enough to ward one from the days of want. That slice of prosperity then becomes an undeniable blessing.

In the issue of financial literacy, The Real Bank chairman Jose “Lolo Pepe” Araullo believes one can start teaching one’s kids about money as soon as they express curiosity or interest about money matters.

“Even two-year-old kids can be taught to put coins into a piggy bank.  They may not completely understand the concept of saving, but just the same, introduce to them the idea of putting the coins into a piggy bank,” Lolo Pepe says. 

He adds that when a child asks for something in a store, explain to him or her that he or she has to pay for the item, that it is not free.

“At this age, you can even introduce the concept of ‘needs vs. wants.’ Instilling good money values can begin very early,” he says. 

Teaching the importance of financial literacy among young minds is one of the advocacies of The Real Bank. The bank’s CSR component is dubbed “Bata, Bata, Mag-impok at Magsinop,” which has already produced five volumes of a “big book” titled Mga Kwento ni Lolo Pepe in the last eight years. All the stories in the book are culled from the personal stories of Lolo Pepe.

Grade 4 pupils from Makati Elementary School reenact a chapter from the book Mga Kwento ni Lolo Pepe.

Early this year, the bank’s advocacy project  in partnership with the Department of Education and Marylindbert International  launched the Madali Lang Mag-bangko traveling exhibit in 10 selected schools in Metro Manila, Region 3 and Region 4A. The exhibit was very interactive with the presence of the hardworking ant named Temyong Tipid, The Real Bank mascot. Lolo Pepe says the exhibit will be brought to other schools around the country to encourage many more students to actively participate in practical savings in their homes and communities. The mobile exhibit, according to Lolo Pepe, features the “Alkansya Making Contest” to intensify the diligence of the students to save money for a rainy day.

Lolo Pepe says he’s already blessed by simply sharing his two advocacy projects through his “big books” and his “traveling exhibit.” But because of his giving spirit, he was accorded the third big achievement at the start of the year: an Anvil Award of Merit for PR Tool for The Real Bank’s 35th anniversary celebration titled Being Real in a Changing World, a musical that documented the bank’s rich history and heritage through a finely woven series of songs performed by the crème de la crème in Philippine theater. The award was presented to Lolo Pepe at the 47th Anvil Awards at the EDSA Shangri-La Hotel.

With all the accomplishments of the bank, Lolo Pepe is a picture of delight. But he’s not the type to rest on his laurels. Any conversation with him will lead to his favorite topic  his ultimate desire to promote financial literacy among children.

“As the kids grow to become teenagers,” Lolo Pepe continues, “they can be taught about compound interest. Get them excited about how fast their money can grow if they start saving today.” 

Lolo Pepe is aware that a young mind can be developed to become financially literate in a comprehensive and encompassing way. He says that saving money should begin with the family. Parents, he adds, should be able to introduce their kids to lessons that will make them earn money like selling old newspapers, baked goodies or palamig.

He also espouses that part of financial literacy is teaching the kids how to properly take care of their personal belongings. It also includes taking care of their health; that eating good nutritious food is cheaper than junk food. Children, he says, should also be taught early on about conserving water and electricity. He says that saving money can also be done by teaching the kids the value of exercise  that it is better to walk rather than take the jeep or taxi or tricycle if the place they are going to is just near.

“Children learn directly from watching their parents/teachers.  They must walk-the-talk when it comes to managing their finances if they expect their kids to understand and appreciate the value of money, saving, and preparing for their financial future,” Lolo Pepe concludes.

To save money now is to embark on a future of comfort. With apologies to Perry Como, we learn to catch a falling star, put it in our pockets. That way we save for a rainy day.

(For your new beginnings, please e-mail me at bumbaki@yahoo.com or my.new.beginnings@gmail.com. You may want to follow me on Twitter @bum_tenorio.

Have a blessed Sunday!)