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I had a good laugh when a friend said to me, �Ablah, the cedi has cholera�. His reason? �As soon as you take hold of it, irrespective of any amount, it just �diarrheas� away from your pocket. But is there not some truth in his assertion? Sometime ago, it wasn�t uncommon to find a missing note or a coin along the paths of both busy and quiet highways and byways. Anytime I chanced upon such good omen, I made a sign of the cross, picked it up, turned myself in a circular motion thrice to ward off any negativism attached to it, before pocketing it. These gestures were a requirement for such discoveries in the community I grew up in, and I never have unlearned it. I asked my elderly aunties for explanation why we had to perform those acts before picking up the find but up till today, no one has given me any proper explanation. These days however, I barely hear anyone talking about having discovered any coins or notes along any route. In this day and age when people have stitched and re-stitched the seams of their pockets with chain and machine stitches, what are we to expect? People are holding on with aggression and tightfistedness, whatever cash they have. Some have developed biceps therefrom. And some too have put in strict austerity measures in their homes, substituting coke with soobolo, eggs stew with agushie stew, cerelac for oblayoo and beef with soya. Some are growing healthier and healthier lately because they�re walking the distance instead of cruising in their own vehicles or boarding public transport � thanks to rising fares and fuel costs. The list could go on and on. Hmm. But really, should the present economic trend cause us to be that tight-fisted? I boarded an Accra-bound trotro from Madina on Tuesday morning. There were about seven passengers in the vehicle when I joined it. Apparently, the vehicle had departed the station without completely filling up. I got a seat at the last but one row. Having settled, I noticed the head on the neck of the gentleman who sat two rows ahead was very familiar. A scar on his right ear confirmed my suspicion. It was Ofoliquaye, a former work colleague. He had this aura of tension around him � he turned not his neck, either to the left or to the right. I hadn�t seen him in months and wanted to at least say hello. But upon second thought, I felt he may not want his name voiced out in such a public place so I said nothing. For some strange reason though, I sensed strongly he had seen me but was just pretending. And this was a gentleman I had worked in the same department with for close to five years. He had resigned from his post barely eight months ago, so there was no way he could have said he didn�t remember me. Neither could he have said that he hadn�t seen me climbing on to the vehicle because I was the passenger the mate had assisted to climb the vehicle when it had stopped to load us from off the shoulders of the road. I had a little pain in my right leg so I needed help in climbing. That incident was enough to have diverted his supposed excessive concentration. When the vehicle went past the Ghana Water Company at Legon, the driver�s mate who was yet to collect the fares began to snap his fingers and said �yeeeeeeees� � his means of fare collection. He started from the front seat. When it got to my turn to pay, I decided to wow the stiff-necked passenger: �Mate�, I said audibly, pointing at Ofoliquaye, �I am paying for that gentleman and I.� �He has already paid oo�, said the mate. �It doesn�t matter. Give him back his money�, I said with a smile. As the mate gave back his coins to him, he pretended not to have heard the discussion going on, and asked the mate, �agh, why are you giving my money back to me?� Before the young man could utter a response I said clearly, �Ofoliquaye, I have paid for you�. That was when he turned, smiled and said, �ei Ablah, so you were in this car and I didn�t know? Thank you very much. As for you? You are full of surprises.� I said nothing in return. I only shook my head in wonder, smiling as I did, and looked out the window to admire my surroundings. I could tell he was very ashamed for his pretentious act. Obviously, he thought if he had acknowledged my presence initially, he would have had to pay for my fare. That culture koraaa, where is it from? That when you sit in the same car as a person you know, you should feel obliged to pay for him or her? Why can�t we just be? Fine, if you feel you have extra cash and you want to pay, why not? Otherwise should you think of being painted a bad person by the other party? Definitely not. Ofoliquaye alighted before I did. Smiling in my direction, he winked at me as he descended. He simply amused me. It obviously wasn�t his refusal to pay for me that amused me oo, his pretense of not acknowledging my presence in the vehicle was what caused me to wonder. Anyway, I know as for you, you are not tight-fisted in anyway. So please feel free to call me on 0200 110 110, to pledge your support for my orphanage project in September. You may also reach me via email on [email protected].