Extended Wealth

All formal economies could be destroyed, disbanded at the whims of those who control them or if disasters cut off groups that once engaged in the exchange of money and products.  Yes, belongings like cars, spare batteries, paper, and movie discs could also be destroyed or lost, but the descent of an entire economy into trouble or the dissolution of that economy does not make personal property vanish from the sensory plane.  A home or a book or a shelf does not come to an end if a social construct falls.  Silverware does not become dust because a social construct, not comprised of the matter that constitutes the silverware, is no longer in place.  Items can outlast economic fluctuations or the very systems of currency and exchange that allowed those items to be purchased to begin with.

Even as one saves money, short of needing to channel all available levels of income or spending money into something like a serious medical treatment, acquiring more and more non-monetary possessions simultaneously can be a great method of expanding wealth.  By accumulating things that one could use or enjoy, from seeds to grow fruit trees (which one could then borrow more seeds from to continue the cycle) to video games to play for leisure or stimulation, one has a more diversified spectrum of wealth.  These things do not strictly depend on a functioning economy for their pragmatic use or their personal appeal.  Having possessions beyond money or at least the ability to buy possessions or services is the only rational basis for seeking money to begin with!

What use is there for money in an economy that is nonexistent?  The services or physical things that it buys or the psychological security it provides are the real uses of money.  Apart from an established system of currency and its circulation, money accomplishes nothing either by giving it to others or by holding onto it.  Certain things that money can buy while the currency remains active, in contrast, do not have this limitation.  Thus, it is ideal for better material prosperity, as opposed to solely financial prosperity, to obtain helpful or unique or desired items while one still has the monetary freedom to do so.  A person can do this while still saving money depending on their income and needs, varying their amounts spent on things to fit their preferences or circumstances.

Though having items that one could sell or exchange for others is also of financial benefit even within the context of a thriving economy, possessions transcend the arbitrary monetary units that pay for them and are even more necessary for security in some ways than money.  In a situation where one would have possessions but no access to money or no way to use the money one has, possessions still have usefulness.  In a situation where one would have money but no possessions and no way to use the money to access them, money is useless even on a practical level.  It is plain which of the two is greater.  One only has a legitimate purpose in relation to the other, and the other is independently important for safety, convenience, or pleasure.