What if you were drowning in debt and you suddenly find yourself with a bag full of cash? Would you keep it to yourself or would you do the right thing and return it to its rightful owner?
Source: World Lifestyle
Lily was struggling in life, financially. A mother of three kids and married to an ungrateful husband who was not earning enough, life had become too much for her to handle. She felt that her life had to be a constant sacrifice with little acknowledgment for all the things that she did.
Daydreaming to escape
Lily often daydreamed of having a different kind of life. She often envisioned herself leaving her husband and taking the kids with her. However, she knew that she loved her husband too much to leave him so she decided to swallow her pride and hold on to the relationship.
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Lily also often daydreamed about being rich. Maybe that would solve all her problems. After all, everything seemed to spiral downwards when they started having financial problems. Wealthy people never seem to have unhappy families.
A hardworking mother
Lily had been waking up as early as 6 in the morning so that she could prepare breakfast for her husband and kids. She has two boys who were in middle school and a baby girl who was in kindergarten.
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She does not mind waking up early and doing things for the kids but what made everything difficult is the way her husband, Mark, constantly insulted her. “You call this breakfast? Even the dog will not enjoy this! You should call my mother and ask for tips.” He was never satisfied with anything she prepares for him.
Early starts and late ends
Aside from preparing breakfast, Lily also had to prepare dinner for the family because she would be getting home late every night from work. You see, when their youngest was born, they realized her husband’s salary will no longer be enough to handle the needs of their growing family.
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This forced Lily to take up some additional work and earn her own money. Mark detested this idea at first but it was not as if he really had a choice in the matter. And now, Lily’s job had made her so busy that she could not come home in time to cater to the kids after school.
Lily’s cleaning business
Lily decided to use what she is good at and turn it into a business. Lily is kind of a perfectionist and did a great job cleaning up. So, she decided to start a small cleaning company where she can offer cleaning services for people in their neighborhood.
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She started offering low prices and her job clearly spoke for herself. Soon enough, she was recommended to other people as well. The job took up a lot of Lily’s time. She was often busy and came home late.
Working for bridezilla
Today is probably one of the worse days Lily ever had. She was cleaning a house where a wedding was about to take place. Unfortunately, the bride was unsatisfied with Lily’s work. The bride had complained about how messy the garden was and how there were watermarks in the shower.
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Lily was not supposed to be in charge of cleaning the garden. And she was getting tired of explaining that showers get wet every time guests use them. But she tried to be understanding, Lily knew that the bride gets a lot of pressure as the wedding day nears. So, she quietly took in the verbal abuses and assured the bride that she would do a better job.
Getting frustrated
Once she was done, it was very late. She already knew that Mark would be in a very foul mood when she gets home. As she walked into the subway, she found herself expressing how much she is getting tired of her life.
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She had not meant to say the words out loud and some of the commuters around her turned their heads toward her with looks of pity and annoyance. Lily buried her face in her hands in embarrassment, trying to hold back her tears.
Daydreaming her fears away
Lily started to wonder how her family would get by. As she sat on a dingy seat in the dark, she started daydreaming of living in a place with a lot of grass and where the weather always had clear blue skies.
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She then imagined her kids with happy faces, running in the grass. As she daydreamed about an alternative life for her and her family, a young and drunk passenger sat beside her.
She had to leave the train immediately
The young man smelled and her eyes started to water from the foul smell. Her peaceful daydream was already over. Now she could not wait to get away from the young man. As luck would have it, her stop was near so she patiently sat it out and made sure to keep her guard up.
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As the train reached her stop, Lily immediately stoop up. She was in a hurry to get off the train. But then someone grabbed her hand. It was the drunk young man! “Hey lady! You forgot your bag!” Lily felt a wave of nausea when his breath reached her. Without looking back, Lily quickly grabbed the bag he was handed to her and rushed to the platform.
The bag of cash
It was only when she was about to reach home that Lily realized she did not bring a bag with her. She looked down at the bag in her hands and panicked. It was too late to return the bag to the train station so she decided to hide it inside her wardrobe where nobody in the house could find it. By this time, Lily was worried that she had committed a crime by taking home something that was not hers.
Source: World Lifestyle
Lily decided to find the owner of the bag so that she could return it. So, she opened the bag to check if the contents could point out who owned it. But when she opened the bag, her eyes widened. Inside the bag was a lot of money. She brushed her hands through the cash and knew that it was not counterfeit. Was this the universe’s answer to all her prayers?
Burying the bag in the backyard
Lily did not know what to do with the bag of cash. Apart from her wanting to keep it but she also knew this was wrong. Since she needed more time to figure out what she was going to do, she took the bag out of the wardrobe and buried it out in the backyard.
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It felt wrong to have the bag of cash inside the house. She did not want to risk her kids or Mark finding it. She needed to keep the bag safe while she ponders on what her next steps would be.
Mark starts a fight
As soon as she was done burying the bag, Lily started to head for the kitchen. Mark immediately attacked her with his words when he spotted her. “What took you so long? I told you you should quit that job and stay home.”
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Lily’s head was still in shock from the bag of cash so she did not respond to Mark. She looked around the room and saw that the kitchen sink was full of dirty dishes and that the dining table was a mess. She started cleaning up in silence.
Lily fights back
Sometimes the best way to avoid an argument is to just remain silent. Maybe Mark would just go away and leave her alone. Unfortunately, this tactic did not work. Mark continued to yell and complain as Lily silently cleaned and cleared the kitchen.
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This time, he was complaining about having to pick up one of their boys in school because she was not available. Lily was so tired that she answered back “He’s your son too, Mark! You are also responsible for him!” before leaving the room.
Will money solve their marriage?
Lily loved Mark without a doubt but ever since they had financial problems, Mark had developed this nasty attitude and began acting as if everything was her fault. Lily thought about the bag of cash in the backyard.
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She was desperate and she knew that keeping the cash would solve her problems. But Lily did not want to be a thief. Besides, she was sure that the person who owned it is definitely looking for it.
Getting fired
But just when Lily decided to find the owner of the bag, she received a phone call. It was her bridezilla client informing her that she was very disappointed with Lily’s service and letting her know that she was fired. Lily was sure bridezilla would be giving her a negative review and her cleaning business would be ruined. How could she help her family now?
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With the bride firing her, Lily had nowhere to go once the kids left for school and Mark left for work. She decided to retrieve the bag from the backyard. Lily did not count the cash but she knew it would be enough to end her financial dilemma. Then, she noticed that there were contract papers in the bag as well. Lily read it and found some contact details.
Looking for the owner
Lily listened to her conscience in the end and decided to call the number in the contract. According to the papers, the number belonged to a Paul Sandberg. Lily asked for the address of Paul Sandberg’s office, wrote it down, and decided to drop by and personally hand over the bag to the rightful owner.
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As the rest of the day passed, second thoughts immediately haunted Lily’s mind. She knew that bag of cash would help them spend the rest of their lives with ease. But the next morning, Lily woke up determined to do the right thing. Instead of surrendering to the temptation of keeping the bag of cash, she quickly got up and left the house to head for Paul Sandberg’s office.
Battle with the receptionist
As Lily reached the address, she looked up at a huge corporate building. Lily entered and was greeted by the sight of a giant reception desk on the ground floor. Lily approached the receptionist and asked to see Paul Sandberg.
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The receptionist eyed her up and down and asked if she had an appointment in a very stern and arrogant tone. Lily told her that she had an important package to deliver to Mr. Sandberg. The receptionist told Lily that Mr. Sandberg was busy at the moment and it might take a while before he would be available.
Calling security
Despite the advice of the receptionist to leave, Lily told the receptionist that she is willing to wait and sat in one of the chairs in the lobby. Lily refused to leave the building. She knew that once she did, she would be tempted to just keep the bag of cash.
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For some reason, the receptionist refused to let her wait in the lobby. Lily tried to stay calm even as the receptionist approached her and threatened her. Eventually, the receptionist called on security. Just as the security guards came to forcefully remove Lily from the office, the door opened and a handsome suave gentleman stepped out, looking annoyed by the commotion in the lobby.
Returning the bag of cash
The man demanded to know what was happening. The security guard immediately said “Sir, this lady is not leaving. She insists on meeting you.” Lily looked at the man. So this was Paul Sandberg. Paul scanned Lily from top to bottom and Lily’s hands grew tighter around the bag of cash under Paul’s scrutiny.
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Lily introduced herself and handed the bag to Paul. She explained everything that happened and Paul listened patiently to her story. He called one of his associates and asked him to count the money in the bag. Once the associate was done, Paul said “The package is short of the amount that we had agreed upon. Could you look into it?” Paul then asked Lily to wait in the lobby.
Fleeing the scene
Lily started to panic. She knew she did not take a single bill from that bag of cash. She did not want to be blamed for the screw-up. Her overthinking eventually got to her that she fled the scene right away. Lily’s hands were shivering, She felt like a criminal even though she knew that she was innocent.
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While Lily was on her way home, she received a text from her bank. A huge amount of money had been deposited in her bank account. She wondered how this happened. Then, Lily received a call from an unknown number. When she picked up, a familiar voice was on the other end – it was Paul. He was asking her to return to the office tomorrow at 11 AM. Paul wanted to discuss something with her.
What Paul wanted
Lily wondered if she was in trouble but she hesitantly agreed. When she arrived in the office the next day, she was a nervous wreck. The strict receptionist led her right away inside Paul’s office. Paul greeted her with a smile and asked her to sit down.
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Paul then smiled and told her “I was really impressed by your honesty that’s why I decided to reward you. We made some research and deposited some money in your bank account. I hope you received it.” Lily nodded slowly. Then, Paul asked her, “Would you consider working with us?”
A huge opportunity
Lily was dumbfounded. What kind of job could he give her in this huge corporate building? She was sure she did not have enough credentials to earn a place there. Paul continued “I want you to work as my receptionist. You have all the qualities I am looking for.”
Source: World Lifestyle
Then, Paul grabbed a piece of paper to write down her salary. He slid the paper across the desk towards her. Lily took the paper and her eyes grew wide when she saw the amount. This was more than she expected. Lily instantly took the job.
Making the announcement
When Lily arrived home, she was excited to inform Mark about the new job and the great pay. With this salary, she knew that things would go back to the right track in no time and she no longer had to worry about making ends meet.
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She told the news to her husband and kids with a wide smile on her face. “Our financial troubles will finally come to an end!” she declared triumphantly. She could not believe her good luck! The kids got excited but when Lily looked at Mark, her smile immediately disappeared.
The bruised ego
But instead of being happy, Mark grew mad. He did not like the fact that Lily would be earning more than him. Lily was shocked at the rage in Mark’s voice. Instead of being happy that Lily will be able to help out with the finances, Mark felt insulted that she would be earning more than he did.
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Lily tried to reason out with Mark. “It doesn’t really matter who earns more because in the end, it benefits us as a family!” But Mark could not be swayed. It seemed he was living in ancient times where women were expected to stay at home and serve their husbands. Mark remained furious at her for accepting the job right away without consulting him.
A bitter but necessary end
Lily could not believe how unreasonable Mark was becoming. She will not allow her kids to go hungry just because she had to put her husband’s ego first. Lily had enough of Mark and decided to finally leave her toxic marriage. Lily gathered the kids and their things and left their home and they stayed with Lily’s mother for the time being. The divorce papers were then delivered to Mark after a few days.
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Despite giving her best to Mark, it was still never enough. No amount of money she would earn would be good enough for him. With her marriage over, Lily can now live the life she always daydreamed about now that she had a decent job with good pay. And all because she decided to listen to her conscience and be honest. This only shows that if you do good things in life, you will be rewarded greatly.