Three years ago, I wrote a piece for Mother’s Day about the most important money lesson I ever received. It didn’t come from a textbook or professor. It came from my mother, and a system she called The Ledger.

The problems I wrote about in 2023 are still here, only bigger. When I first published this, U.S. federal debt sat at roughly 98% of GDP. Today we’re staring down a forecast of 116% by 2034.

I’m sharing this again, with updated charts and data, because the lesson she taught me still applies. It applied to a kid with a shrinking balance. And it applies to our country’s burgeoning deficit and ongoing irresponsible fiscal spending policies.

Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms!