A young academically smart boy went to apply for a managerial position in a big company. He passed the 1st interview. The director of the company did the last interview. The director saw that the youth’s academic achievements were excellent throughout his school years. The director asked, “Did you get any scholarships for school?” The youth answered “none”. The director asked, “Was it your father who paid for your tuition?” The youth answered, “My father passed away when I was one year old, it was my mother who paid for my school fees”.
The director asked, “Where did your mother work?” The youth answered, “My mother worked as a clothes cleaner. The director requested the youth to show his hands. The youth showed a pair of hands that were smooth and perfect”. The director asked, “Have you ever helped your mother wash the clothes before?” The youth answered, “Never, my mother always wanted me to study and read more books. Furthermore, my mother can wash clothes faster than me”. The director said, “I have a request. When you go back today, go and clean your mother’s hands, and then see me tomorrow morning”.
The youth felt that his chance of landing the job was high. When he went back, he happily requested his mother to let him clean her hands. His mother felt strange, happy but with mixed feelings, she showed her hands to the kid. The youth cleaned his mother’s hands slowly. His tear fell as he did that. It was the first time he noticed that his mother’s hands were so wrinkled, and there were so many bruises. Some bruises were so painful that his mother shivered when they were cleaned with water.
This was the first time the youth realized that it was this pair of hands that washed his clothes every day to enable him to pay the school fee. The next morning, the youth went to the director’s office. The Director noticed the tears in the youth’s eyes and asked, “Can you tell me what you did and learned yesterday in your house?” The youth answered, “I cleaned my mother’s hands and also finished cleaning all the remaining clothes.”
The Director asked, “Please tell me your feelings”. The youth said, “Number 1, I know now what is appreciation. Without my mother, I would not be successful. Number 2, By working with her, I now know how hard she has worked. Number 3, I have come to appreciate the importance and value of family relationships. The director said, “This is what I am looking for in my next manager. I want to recruit a person who can appreciate the help of others, a person who knows the sufferings of others to get things done, and a person who would not put money as his only goal in life. You are hired”.
Moral: If one doesn’t understand and experience the difficulty it takes to earn the comfort provided by their loved ones, then they will never value it. The most important thing is to experience the difficulty and learn to value hard work behind all the given comfort.