I was recently speaking with a friend of mine about some of the changes we are hoping to see in Canada and some of the things we are hoping stay the same with the new government. We got onto the topic of TFSAs (Tax Free Savings) and investing money. This is when I learned my new interesting fact.

In Islam it is against people’s beliefs to gain interest. I wanted to know more because as far as I knew people were not keeping their life savings in piles of cash under the bed. My friend told me that they keep money in the bank like most people and that money gains interest. The money gained from interest is not to be kept though, that money is kept track of. When it has become a reasonable sum that money is then donated to a charity of choice.

This really struck me as a great thing to do. Most interest payments are so small to be insignificant. What is when you got that 1.42$ or 15.32$ or how ever big or small your interest payment was you took that much money and gave it away. Maybe you give it to the homeless veteran on the street, or as an extra large tip for the single mom serving your food. What a place the world would be if we all helped each other out.

This is something I think I could easily adapt to my own life. Maybe use it to sponsor a child or a local shelter. I think it’s something people should think about. We hear it all the time, for less then a cup of coffee a day you can help someone in need. For a little bit of spare change given by big banks you could help someone who needs it. Maybe you do it as an add-on to a trip. I know that when I book my travel insurance and they ask for 2$ for their charity or for my carbon footprint I donate.

I’m going to try to keep track of interest for the next year and when I return home donate the amount to a charity of choice. I challenge others to do the same.