My husband had a grandmother. He would spend every summer at her place. She never minded at all. Back in those days, she ran her own business. She organised everything herself, selling medicinal herbs to chemists. My husband isnt quite sure how she managed it all, but he remembers that, by the standards of the time, she earned quite a lot. She was a woman of a rather unique character. She adored my husband and never skimped on food, but she refused to give him even a bit of money for pocket-money or little treats. Everyone thought she must be saving up for something.
His grandmother had large wardrobes at home, with countless compartments, and everything was always locked. As a boy, my husband was forever curious about what might be inside, but Gran always insisted it was just things for her work. Then times changed. Small businesses became common, and eventually, the competition overtook her. After that, she started working as a healer. She never charged a penny for her services, though people of some means would come to see her.
We would visit her while she was still alive. She lived in the most modest way, wearing old, tattered clothes and eating the simplest meals. When we brought along groceries, shed refuse to accept them, saying that we shouldnt spoil hershe was quite used to living like that.
When she passed away, she left her house to my husband. When we went there to sort out the inheritance, we discovered her pantry was full of food, but everything was long out of date. It turned out her grateful clients had brought her these supplies, but she never ate any of it. The real surprise came when we opened her cupboards. There were piles of expensive items from the nineties, almost like a small museum of collectableseverything you could imagine, and in huge quantities.
Why did she keep her money tied up in things that would only lose value over time? I simply cant understand that woman.
