The local newspaper here in Charlotte is holding an el-cheapo contest, inviting residents to share what they do to save money. Folks say they are so cheap that they rinse and reuse dental  floss, use plastic mesh onion bags to scour pots and pans, go to Hallmark with a spouse to pick out anniversary and birthday cards, give them to each other to read and then put them back.

That a newspaper is seeking tales of frugality is more than a sign of  the economic challenges in our country, it is a reflection of our newfound modesty. Remember that word? Over the last decade or so that idea was lost as we basked in our excesses.

My nearly 80-year-old mother and others who survived the Great Depression never forgot how to be sensible in spending money. She had no choice as a youngster in the 1930s and 1940s, and tells stories of her struggle to relate the experience to open-mouthed grandchildren who find it hard to believe that living was once so hard. As poet Langston Hughes put it so eloquently, ”Life ain’t been no crystal stair” recently for many people.

Folks talk to each other, proudly, about bargains they’ve found, websites offer coupons, lists of free entertainment and other discounts. Grocery stores compete in the frequency of buy-one, get-one-free promotions. Shopping is no longer an Olympic contest.

At our house, my 15-year-old daughter saves more of her allowance and asks to go purchase a pair of jeans only when the ones she has are worn out or too small. At the grocery store, I buy only items that are on sale, use coupons and stock up when there’s a huge discount.

Modesty, according to the dictionary, is simplicity and moderation. That way of thinking is reshaping our lives.

What would you enter in the el-cheapo contest?

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