The day I realised my salary is just a loan from God until the next emergency

Last week my daughter fell sick on a Tuesday. By Wednesday I had spent over 80k on tests and drugs at a private hospital in Wuse. The doctor said she would be fine, Alhamdulillah. But I sat in that waiting room looking at my bank balance and just... calculating.

I earn decent money for Abuja. Government parastatal, steady pay. But wallahi, one medical emergency and the whole month is gone. No savings buffer, no safety net. Just me looking at my payslip wondering how I planned so poorly.

It is not even about the money itself. It is the feeling that you are always one incident away from starting over. One child falling ill, one car breakdown, one family request from Kaduna. And you are back to zero.