The Response

Last week, I wondered whether or not honouring a request for a loan would hurt the borrower more than not giving it. The requester returned yesterday and told me that he had done much thinking, and would still like the full loan, if I'm able to offer it to him.

Of course, the rules of the game shifted over the weekend.

As if to taunt the "wisdom" of my earlier words, my prospective borrower's house was robbed on the very day I wrote them. Important, yes; Urgent, no, I wrote. And then the very vulnerability that he sought to repair was breached.

The target of the thievery wasn't televisions or jewelry. He doesn't have these things. He doesn't even have electricity or running water. No, the target had basic, but real, value. He was robbed of his single-burner paraffin stove, a pan full of food, and some other food on shelves. The thief was hungry.

How much this theft impacted my friend's decision to take the loan, I'll never know.

After much deliberation, I decided to meet him part way. I loaned him a third of the money that he needed, and the two of us agreed to a schedule of weekly repayments. I also gave him another third outright as an early Christmas bonus for work that he has been doing for me over the past months. Needing the final third will keep him motivated to continue to chase down leads for more regular work.

I also offered to help him with the repairs.

He was quite happy with this outcome. The schedule of repayment contemplates him being able to pay off the debt in two months. It is a little bit aggressive, but he welcomed the challenge. He pointed to one week in the middle of the schedule, and announced his goal to double his payment for that week in order to pay off the debt faster.

In doing so, he figured that $16 a month was more than what he needed to buy rice, cooking oil and sugar. The Mozambican staples. He would find a way to survive.

And he had understood that that debt is serious, after all.