Value

An experiment a month or so ago. Guy stood in a London thoroughfare, offering £5 for the asking, wore a big sandwich board. Got very few takers. The researchers were surprized, and attributed this to British reserve, cynicism and distrust. I think the explanation is much simpler. If a guy stood in a Boston street, offering $10, when I was making about that much in my job (gross) in 15 minutes, it wouldn't be worth the perhaps five minutes to attempt the transaction, and miss my train. I was not particularly well paid in that city. Most Londoners would be looking at much less than five minutes wage/time - really not worth it. Plus, any large city has some Naturally Selected bright con artists - that would make a good lead in for a scam anywhere. Especially for a man expecting a woman to approach him on the street to ask for money. Pride would play a part, as well as safety considerations.

The other side of this, we value what we work for and pay for. Which is why so many forgeries of art or rare documents go unnoticed for decades. The higher the price paid, the less likely the owner is to suspect a fake. We care most for what we possess.

And not just things. Nothing quite like a friend who grows on you. Better yet, that you grow on them, despite their initial hesitations. We say we want free stuff, to be instantly liked, to fall in love at first sight, but we don't really trust those. We trust the truths we struggle to understand, the lessons that hurt, the life we earn.

Because cheap gifts are too easily lost. Light friends drift away from funerals and hospitals. Easy love wears off like temporary tattoos. Treasure is buried deep. The holy requires everything of us.