A lot of reader stories featured on Get Rich Slowly are from people who got "saved" from bad financial habits, who were burned by their rabid consumerism and were forced to sober up, who cut up their cards and overcame tremendous debt, bought a smaller home and heated it less, took up a more reasonable hobby, and generally realized the value of family and experiences. That's not my story.

I grew up in a family that already valued those things.

• My parents grew all our own vegetables in our huge Michigan garden, killed four or five deer per year for meat, canned their own spaghetti sauce and salsa, and generally saved a large portion of their income.
• My parents took our family on outings to pick blackberries or cross-country ski.
• They tapped our maple trees to make syrup and heated our house with firewood (that I endlessly hauled indoors).
• They preached fire and brimstone regarding credit cards, were suspicious of advertising, didn't remortgage their house for fast cash, and made all our Halloween costumes by hand.
• We traveled to Europe as a family, valued education, and were loving and honest with each other.
• My parents never divorced, never shamed or abused me, and taught me frugality, patience, satisfaction, and paid for years of violin lessons.

I'm continuously learning how valuable it was to have a healthy, joyful childhood. It's my greatest treasure.