Greetings have always been associated with people checking on their friends, relatives, and business associates. They have always been a sign of peace and friendship.
But as the days went buy, greetings metamorphosed from just being a “sign of peace” to a background where someone wants to “fish some cash” out of your pockets.
Nowadays, we do not just answer greetings as soon as they land because one never knows what the carrier of the greetings will say next. The most popular phrase after the greetings might be “I need a favour.”
Those who have gone to celebrate their Christmas in the village will tell you that greetings are no longer free. In the village, greetings retail between 50 and 100 shillings.
Someone in the village will greet you, double the smile, hold your hand tightly expecting you to fish out your wallet. If they notice that their smile is not doing the magic, they will go straight to the point and ask for the cash. If that won’t still work, you will be branded selfish and someone who wants to show off.
Calls from the village are not as free as they used to be. Picking any call might lead to someone asking for “some money urgently” with no plan of paying back.
Imagine waking up daily, going to work, earning your money, only for someone to ask for it “urgently” with no shame at all. Am not saying people shouldn’t ask for money, but people should ask for money with an intention of not paying.
Some call it Black Tax, something that we have to do just because we were born out of a certain family or within certain friendships. What many people don’t know is that Black Tax can be the reason many people are always broke, despite earning money at the end of every month.
Related Content: How Can You Beat The Proverbial Black Tax?