For the Love of Money

For years, I watched from afar with admiration and fear. I read the posts and felt they spoke to me, but I’d look the other way and think, One day, I’ll get it together.

Money has a way of bringing out the best and worst in me. I made a decent amount, but if you looked at my accounts, they told a different story, one that sometimes left me living paycheck to paycheck. It wasn’t necessarily that I didn’t have money; it was that I always felt like I never had enough.

Shopping has always been my happy place. I shop when I’m happy, when I’m sad, when I get a raise, and, of course, just because. I knew I wanted to break the cycle, but I couldn’t figure out how. I tried freezing my cards, literally, putting stickers on them, using cash only. You name it, I tried it.

Then one day, while scrolling on Instagram, I saw Cash Camp on The Finance Bar page. It stopped me in my tracks. I didn’t know all the details, but after following The Finance Bar for over a decade, I knew Marsha had something cooking, and it would be good. I thought maybe this would be what I needed: that extra push.

I signed up to get more information and asked a few more questions over the following weeks. As soon as registration opened, I secured my deposit. Over the next few months, we filled out forms and completed whatever was asked of us. I eventually booked my flight after debating whether to drive. I’m glad I flew!

When the weekend finally came, I was excited and nervous. We didn’t really have an itinerary. We just knew to fly into Charlotte, and two days before the trip, we got the address for where we’d be staying. As a planner, I’d normally worry. I like details and want to know what we’ll be doing each day. But I went with the flow, and that’s how the whole weekend unfolded.

When we arrived, we were greeted like family coming together for a reunion. I didn’t know any of the women, but I wasn’t worried. The rest of the weekend was history. I spent time with amazing women and camp counselors, and I got to just be. We laughed, we cried, and most of all, we connected on a deeper level around the thing that frightened us most: money!

Marsha and her crew were absolutely amazing. The icing on the cake was that my creative-genius LS was there too, a familiar face. I left with new connections, and I feel like we now belong to a secret society, lol. We’ll forever be known as the OG Camp Cash Crew!

I’ve already paid my deposit for next year and have my flight tracker set up. Marsha, it was my first time meeting you, and you have the biggest heart. I couldn’t love you more. Thank you for your vision, your selflessness, and for bringing us together as Black women to guide us toward living the life we deserve, one where we choose our options instead of letting money choose for us.