"...you will squeeze the life out of that toothpaste tube now...!"

"...you will squeeze the life out of that toothpaste tube now...!" I said, grinning from ear to ear.

It was during my primary school days. With morning school routines being a universal ritual, caregivers, especially mothers, have the task of dragging kids out of bed every morning and supplying everything from a toothbrush to socks.

On this particular day, things were no different. Mom retrieved the tube of Colgate (toothpaste common in many households in the '80s and '90s, or the more budget-friendly Babool). The tube was completely bent, squeezed dry. Another squeeze might have made it shriek in protest. But the unsuspecting tube was unaware of what awaited it! Mom seized the poor tube and headed to the kitchen. Moments later, she reappeared with a Saansi (Gujarati for the tongs used in the kitchen) in one hand and the terrified toothpaste tube in the other.

Carefully, she rolled the toothpaste until it looked like a tightly curled up snake. Then, like an acupressure expert, she applied just the right amount of pressure at the right spots (mostly at the tube's neck) to extract some paste that probably never imagined seeing the light of day again. I hastily started brushing, but to my amazement, the tube was returned to the cabinet, not the dust bin. Mom saw the look on my face. Mothers often know the question you are gonna ask even before the question presents itself to you. "That will easily last 3 to 4 days more." she declared, confining the curled up tooth paste back where it belonged, for the next few days at the least.

Early life lessons:-

- It's a good habit to get the most out of resources, but not at the expense of something else, especially someone's physical or mental health. Sometimes, all it takes is a mindset focused on saving and optimizing, along with some creative thinking.

- We often don't realize when we're wasting something. That unused paste would have been useless if thrown away. By using it, we not only saved a bit of money but also prevented it from going to waste.

The attached image is of a ketchup bottle at my home yesterday. While its successor has arrived, this one has been relegated to a Sirsasana (headstand) position for the last two days, serving for a couple of samosas. There's still a squeeze or two left in it.

At home, sometimes, we still handle toothpaste tubes and packs of milk, oil, and ghee similarly. However, my 76-year-old mother's mastery in extracting every last drop far surpasses my skills!

Wishing you all a Happy New Year! May you continue accumulating savings and building wealth by making the most of what (not who) can be squeezed in 2024.