Prior to the 1980s and the event of easy credit, most people would buy moderately expensive purchases using a system known as layaway. People would head to stores for holiday sales, and if they wanted something they could not afford at this time, they would go to the counter, fill out a layaway form, put down a deposit, and the item would be taken off the shelf and stored until the consumer paid off the bill in a series of installments.

You did not get the instant gratification of taking the purchase home immediately. Yet, you got the benefit of the day's sales, along with no bill from a credit card company once you finally got to take it home. More importantly it taught and reinforced the idea of saving for a purchase that you could not immediately afford to purchase. The idea of saving is badly missing from contemporary society.

Hopefully the new restraint that the credit crisis has forced upon people will make them rethink their consumption habits. People will learn to only buy what they really need, and if something is expensive, try to save as much money as possible before purchasing it. This will help reduce wasteful consumption and keep more people from becoming prisoners of debt.

One must have hope for tomorrow and that the lessons of the current crisis and lack of consumer credit will teach people to become better people. We need to all become less wasteful, less spending, and most importantly less in debt. Layaway allows people to purchase and enjoy some of the finer products of today, but with a new found sense of responsibility.