In reality, programming is a highly skilled profession that requires considerable investment in time and hard work to get good at it. If you make that investment and gain those skills, you can use them to generate a lot of value, and that's why it pays relatively well as an industry.
Everyone can be physically fit, for free, yet not many achieve and or maintain it.
The skill (and subsequent value) comes in when priorities change, things need to be refactored, and you need an experienced developer to come up with a solution that works well.