The Professional Philanthropist Chapter 1

My husband was famous in our community for being an incredibly generous philanthropist. He made $8,500 a month, and he donated every single cent of it to various charities.

Meanwhile, the mortgage, the car payments, our son's tuition, and his parents' medical bills all fell entirely on my shoulders.

My salary simply couldn't cover it all. Drowning in debt, I finally tried to reason with him:

"Could you please just keep a little bit of your salary to help out at home?"

My husband immediately got angry:

"I work hard for my money, and I have the right to donate it if I want to! Why are you trying to control my finances?"

His parents chimed in, rushing to his defense:

"Our son is a well-known, respected philanthropist! If you aren't going to be proud of him, the least you could do is stop trying to scheme for his money and ruin his reputation. Why are you so incredibly selfish?"

Even my five-year-old son glared at me:

"Mommy won't let Daddy be a good person! Mommy is bad!"

I nodded, utterly defeated, and didn't argue further.

The very next day, I accepted my company's offer for a six-month, closed-campus executive training program.

I wanted to see exactly how this family of "great philanthropists" was going to survive without my paycheck.

On payday, David had barely walked through the door after work before he posted on Facebook:

"Donated $35,000 this month. Just doing my small part to spread kindness in the world."

The post included screenshots of his bank transfers and a certificate of appreciation from a local charity.

Within minutes, the post was flooded with likes and comments:

"David, you're amazing! You didn't just donate your salary, you donated your entire annual bonus too!"

"Giving away every cent of your paycheck every single month... you are a true philanthropist. Mad respect."

"God bless you, man."

My in-laws quickly liked the post and commented: "That's our wonderful son! We are so proud of you!"

I let out a heavy sigh, closed Facebook, and opened my budget spreadsheet.

This month, I had to pay our son's preschool tuition, cover my in-laws' out-of-pocket medical expenses, pay the mortgage and car loan, and pay down the credit card debt I had accumulated just covering last month's groceries...

The total expenses came out to a little over $4,000.

My monthly take-home pay was $2,800.

I was short $1,200.

It was the same story every single month.

By the end of the month, the household bills felt like a knife pressing against my throat, suffocating me.

I took a deep breath and turned to look at David sitting on the sofa.

He was still endlessly refreshing Facebook, occasionally chuckling to himself. Probably reading another comment praising him.

After hesitating for a long time, I finally spoke up:

"David, I need to talk to you about something."

He didn't even look up from his phone. "What is it?"

I paused, keeping my tone as gentle as possible:

"The bills this month are over $4,000. My paycheck is only $2,800. We're short $1,200."

"Going forward, could you please stop donating your entire paycheck? We really need you to keep some of it for the house."

David's thumb stopped scrolling.

He snapped his head up, looking at me as if I had just suggested something completely psychotic. He scowled at me:

"I work hard for my money, and I have the right to donate it if I want to! Why are you trying to control my finances?"

I tried to explain:

"I'm not trying to stop you from donating. I just need you to keep a little bit of it to help support the family."

"Your dad has a heart condition, your mom has diabetes, Leo has school, and we have a mortgage and a car loan to pay. The expenses are just too high. I physically cannot carry this entire burden on my salary alone."

David scoffed coldly, his tone dripping with self-righteousness:

"If you can't afford it, then why don't you just work harder?"

"People only think I'm great because I donate everything I make. Why are you trying to ruin my good deeds just so you can be lazy?"

I stared at David in absolute disbelief. I couldn't comprehend how he could actually say those words out loud.

To keep this family afloat, to try and earn just a little bit more money, I constantly worked late and pulled all-nighters.

For years, I hadn't bought myself a single new piece of clothing. I hadn't slept through the night. Even when I was sick, I didn't dare use my PTO.