Stories of Kindness from Around the World

Dad, Can I Do That Again?


--by Richard, posted Jul 11, 2008
Let me tell you another story. It’s not a mythic story; it refers to a real event, which I attach great importance to, which was told to me when I was teaching a class at a business school in Mexico. 

I was teaching a class in business ethics, and we were dealing with the question, What is a good human being?   Can you be a successful businessman and also be a morally good man or woman at the same time, or do these two goals work against each other?  Or to what extent do they coincide and to what extent do they oppose each other?  It’s a very interesting question, and a very central question for our society now in all kinds of ways.

At a certain point during the discussion, one of the students -- a young man of about thirty -- described an event that took place at Christmas.  He and his five-year-old son were decorating the tree, and a little boy came to the front door begging.  If you ever visit Mexico, you will see that there the people take begging as very much a normal part of life, nothing to get all upset about and nothing to get embarrassed by or excited about. You just accept it and you give what you can.  It’s very much a way of life to help the
poor. 

So, this little boy came to the door, a boy about the same age as my student’s son.

The father and the son went to the front door, and the father went back with his five-year-old son and said to him, “Give him one of your toys.” 

So the little boy picked up some old toy, and his father said to him, “No, no – give him your favorite toy.”

And the little boy, like the little tiger, said, “No way!” He cried, he refused.  But the father – this is a true story – the father, like the big tiger in a way, insisted gently, “No, you must give him one of your favorite toys.” 

And finally the boy, with his head down, picked up a toy he had just gotten, and the father waited in the living room, and the boy walked to the front door with the toy in his hand.  And the father waited and waited.

And what do you think happened?

After a couple of minutes his son came running back into the living room, his face radiant.   “Daddy,” he said, “can I do that again?”

[--by Jacob Needleman in Goodrich Lecture at Indian Springs School]

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Readers Comments

Thaata wrote: Kudos to the father who really understood the joy of giving and helping his little boy to discover the same. Happiness shines through everywhere where such people tread.
Zevelina wrote: Wow! Got goosebumps and tears in my eyes. So deep, and yet so easy to do! Perfect
luv4all wrote: Nvr expected that, with grown ups it may take a while to realise the joy and do it again but children are closer to god :)
Very inspiring indeed.
BedBug wrote: Yes! It feels so good to give. Why do we forget that between giving? It's like a natural high. We should do it every day.
makethemsmile wrote: thank god for the father,i'm sure the son will never forget in his life. i care.
grammagussie wrote: What a beautiful story. I have been humbled by the poor, begging in the streets in Mexico. Many of them wash your windows at the stop lights or sell you "cicklets" they are so willing to earn any handout you may give them. It is such a gift to be allowed to donate to them.

Thank you for sharing this story.
sunshine360 wrote: thank you for sharing that story,i always say it stars from home when you learn to give from the heart it is such a good feeling. GOD BLESS
lovebug wrote: God Bless you Jacob Needlman, you told a story even I could believe
Gassim wrote: Hmm... that's very emotional its shows that love is much important than toys and money its self
Thanks
sethi wrote: The little boy had so much abundance in him.
Thank you.

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