A younger co-worker of mine at the food pantry came to work one day wearing new Nikes. When I complimented him he replied a bit sheepishly, saying that his girlfriend bought them for him, telling him, “you deserve them after the way you take care of us.”

Though I expressed appreciation out loud, my thoughts ran to censorship. You should have saved that money. You have five children; you can’t be buying shoes like that. If you save a little at a time, eventually you’ll have enough to change your circumstances.

Or so I used to think. It took a few more months of fruitless job search and a few more months observing the homeless as I distributed grilled cheese sandwiches and ran “Bucks for Butts” before I started to get it. “It” being the knowledge that no matter what you do, how hard you work, how much you plan, it might not be enough to overcome the odds against you.

Another example: for a couple of summers, I worked at a spiedie shop. I was appalled when poor families came in and ordered the biggest sandwiches, largest fries and largest drinks for everyone, even the youngest child in the family. They often didn’t even finish the meal. I thought they should have budgeted and taken home a doggie bag. They definitely shouldn’t have spent so much money. If they managed their money, by golly, they could get ahead.

What I couldn’t see at the time was this family’s small celebration of temporarily having enough. Of not scrimping. Of even being a little wasteful. And, every family member was included in the feast, even if the pound of fries was bigger than their head.

I’m not advocating it as a financial strategy, but I have some sense, after my own financial life was turned upside down, of how little sense it makes to play by the rules that always put you at the bottom. Life is outrageously unfair. Why continue to play the game when you already know the outcome?

When one’s future is so unknowable, living in the moment is the only sane thing to do. So, if Fortune smiles on you and gives you Nikes, why not enjoy the hell out of them?