[Margaret Pilkington]

The problem today is that children do not see their parents struggling to find money for every day items like a loaf of bread.
When I was young it was a frequent occurrence to search out the coppers that had gone down the back of the sofa..To look if we had any 'Cheshire Milk' bottles to go back to the shop for the three happence deposit....to look for pop bottles which had three pence back on them.....and the triumph of finding such items (just so that we could have a slice of toast) is memorable...So is the not finding the money....it meant that we would go hungry.
Today children do not see the reality of credit card bills.....because it isn't seen as realistic to let them know of the financial constraints a family is in....Because in truth, today debt seems to be 'no big deal'. Far different from when I was growing up.
My early life set the tone for my suspicion of debt.....for my dislike of owing anyone money.

Personally, I think it is a healthy attitude to have. I will not incur a debt that I cannot cover.
I have no mortgage......this was paid off at the earliest time......and really speaking, this was the only debt that I could not cover at the outset....but I would not eat rather than miss a payment.