Blog entry by Olaoluwa Benjamin

Picture of Olaoluwa Benjamin
by Olaoluwa Benjamin - Tuesday, 14 October 2014, 12:02 AM
Anyone in the world

I stood there, staring fixedly at the pair of shoes through the glass doors of the store. Amidst the many 'oohs' and 'aahs' that my friends made at them in sheer admiration, I thought to myself, 'if I could afford this beautiful pair before me, would I really buy them?'.

They were a black lace patent leather boots with a pink coloured satin peeking underneath; the very delight of every shoe lover! The 4” heels and zipper were just perfect. However, 'perfection' was the least word to describe the price tag that hung from the side of the shoe. My friends and I had seen the shoe during our window-shopping after seeing a film at the movies. The design was quite beautiful, and in our surprise, we made a cheerful display before the store, loving every bit of the shoes. Perhaps, I was the only one who saw the price tag or even cared to look at it, but then there it was, a tiny white card that read #76,000.

Now, I didn't know what to think of it as a young unemployed undergraduate student. Who in her right mind was ever going to purchase that pair of shoe no matter how attractive it seemed to her? As I counted the 'zeroes' over again, I wondered if I would buy them if I had such an amount to spare. At this juncture, I had begun to weigh my 'needs and wants'. Agreed, the shoes were nice enough to buy them off the rack that very instant but then they were only shoes - see how a price tag can shape one's rationality? My fervour for a pair of shoe was drastically reduced on seeing the price tag. Definitely, they were not shoes I neither needed nor wanted any longer.

The question to be asked is this, should a price be a yard stick for what we consider a need or something we merely want? Most times, this is what happens when we come across such delightful items on sale. We define a need unconsciously (or consciously) by what we can afford and on the other hand, what we do not need is something we obviously cannot afford. However, majority of the items that fall in this category of needs are not what we truly need. They are merely items that we want and can afford at that moment.

If I had that #76,000 to spare easily on those boots, they would be hanging in my shoe rack today (probably worn out because it's over five years today). Irrespective of the times, this is a situation that we all face and have to make such considerable choices. Lacy leather or not, who needed boots to run up staircases in a haste to attend lecture classes anyway.

[ Modified: Friday, 17 October 2014, 9:12 AM ]