Fall From Greatness

Amazed, Shocked, Horrified, Delighted. To those who knew him well, the word “pleased” was used to describe his final decision, although it ended the way it did. Before I tell you how it ended, let me tell you how it all started. To do that I must go back to the beginning. Or maybe I should say the bottom. Rock bottom.

Aaron Wycliff was at the lowest point he had ever been at in his life. He was behind on his rent. His electricity was just turned off. He received a final notice from the gas company. His part-time job, at minimum wage, was not enough to pay the bills and buy food. That didn’t make a difference anyway since he was just laid off. Company downsizing. To top it off, when he came home, there was an eviction notice on his door. He was given 1 week to move out. This should not have happened to such a kind person.

Aaron was the type of person who would give a strange in-need the shirt off his back, even if it was his last shirt. There was a time when the young boy next door came home from school and his parents weren’t home. Aaron looked after the boy and even gave him a sandwich when he said he was hungry. That sandwich was the last morsel of food he had. He wouldn’t be able to buy more food for 2 days. That’s just the type of person he was.

When he was leaving his apartment, Aaron started to assess what he had and how he would move all it out. As it turned out, he didn’t own a lot of things. Just a few articles of clothing, a generic, prepaid cell phone, and a large fleece blanket. He didn’t have any computers or tablets. He didn’t have any game systems, no TV. The small 15 inch TV, the furniture, the appliances, they were all there when he moved it. They did not belong to him, and he was not the type of person that would take what he didn’t own.

Being a 3rd generation only child, he had no siblings, cousins, aunts or uncles to turn to. He did have friends, but being the middle of the night, he didn’t want to place any burdens on them. Robert's children had school in the morning. Mike had to work. He didn’t want to disturb them. For the first time in his life, he slept on a park bench. He woke about 2AM. On the bench across from him was a homeless man and his son. The child seemed to be shivering. Although he had nothing, he gave his blanket to the boy. This small act of kindness is what set things in motion for greatness to happen.

The next morning, when he awoke, he found the man and child sitting on the bench smiling at him. “Thank you.”, the boy said as he walked over and returned the blanket. The man didn’t say anything. He just smiled. The son gave Aaron a hug, which made his father smile more, and they walked away. The father returned nearly half an hour later. He handed Aaron a small suitcase. “I have something for you”, he said. “Don’t open it here. Wait until you’re someplace more private.” He didn’t want to accept the gift. He wasn’t being nice because he wanted something back. He only saw a cold child and he wanted to help. So he started to refuse the gift, but he insisted. So, he took the suitcase and made his way to Mike’s house.

Mike opened the door and noticed Aaron holding the suitcase and his blanket. “I can let you have the office until you get back on your feet. But remember, it is my office.”

Aaron only needed a place to sleep. Sleeping on a park bench wasn’t ideal. He promised to spend his days looking for a job and a new place to stay. The two friends hugged, and Mike promised to do what he could to help Aaron.

“You know I would have opened my door no matter what time you came.”, Mike said, “For now, come get something to eat while I clear out some stuff so I can give you a little privacy.”

This was the best meal he had had in weeks. He went to his room (or should I say Mikes office) where there was a murphy bed. He sat down and opened the suitcase he was given. Inside was a letter on top of a few articles of clothing. They were warmer than what he had, so he was grateful. The letter was simple but didn’t make sense at first. It read:

To the recipient of this gift:

If you are reading this, you are someone who showed kindness to others although not having much for yourself. Whatever you do, don’t let it go to your head. Don’t forget the ones you love.

A Friend

The clothes in the suitcase were of top quality. They were all brand name. There was also a small key with a tag from A.R. Savings and Holdings. It was a safety deposit box key. He told Mike about the suitcase and the key and asked for a ride to the bank.

“Mr. Wycliff”, the bank manager started. “We’ve been expecting you. The paperwork is all ready. “

“What is this about?”

“I’m sure you will be pleased with it.”

As Aaron started to read the paperwork, one thing stood out as if it was in large bold print. “$25,000,000”

Aaron couldn’t breathe. He handed the paper to Mike and asked him to read it.

“Who did you give your blanket to?”, asked Mike.

“That would be the son of Alfred Raman. Billionaire and founder of A.R. Savings and Holdings.”

The papers were signed and $25 million was transferred to Aarons new account.

“What are you going to do with it?” asked Mike.

“First thing first, find a place to live.”

What kind of house would you buy with that much money. Aaron did not buy a house. He did not buy a mansion. What he bought was a yacht. The best $5 million can buy. Although it was just him, the boat was big enough for a family of 6 to live on.

Aaron was the same giving person he was before. At least that’s how it started off. He donated money to many charities. He helped the poor. He gave people jobs on his yacht. After another $5 million was gone rather quickly, he decided to start his own business using his yacht to transport large groups of people across the lake. This expanded to hosting yacht parties. It didn’t take much time before he gained $5 million.

One day, while transporting the staff of the Baltasar Group, a up and rising tech company, to a seminar, he happened to meet Laura Dean, a very beautiful and intelligent woman with a wonderful personality. 3 attributes you normally never find together. The 90-minute ride was more than enough for him to realize that this was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

Laura was taken in by this millionaire with the charming personality. Most rich people in the area looked down on the common people. They acted as if they were somehow better than everyone else. But here was Aaron. He just received $1 million per day for the use of the yacht for this 3-day seminar. Although he had people working for him, he served his guest. His personality was no different than that night he slept on a park bench. He would still give up his last blanket if someone else was in need. This is what she was attracted to. It didn’t take too much time for her to realize that this was the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.

Aaron continued to make more money very quickly. He soon sold his yacht and bought a bigger one. The wedding was held on this boat. Mike was his best man. The reception was held out at sea. The beauty of the full moon on the Atlantic Ocean set the perfect scene for a romantic night.

After the honeymoon was over, Aaron started hosting larger parties and making more money. But with the larger parties, Aaron started to mingle with the richer crowds. Little by little he would start to act like the richer people. When they were married, Laura seemed like the happiest person on the planet. Now, whenever they took photos together, she seemed sad.

Time went on and Aaron continued to buy bigger and bigger. They had 3 kids and lived full time on the yacht. The problem was that he was spending more time with his guest than his family. He loved the party life. His newest one had a helipad. He now owned 3 of them and would often travel from one to the other by helicopter. Sometimes his family wouldn’t see him for days on end. They lived on the smaller of the 3 which he didn’t care about anymore. The only reason he didn’t sell it was because they wanted it.

Laura never liked the party life. Once and a while was ok, but it had become every day. It was becoming all day. She still loved her husband; he still loved her. But while his business was getting bigger and bigger, she was becoming sadder and sadder.

Aaron would meet all types of people at these parties. While hosting a party of over 50 guests, he met a lady named Maxine. He wasn’t romantically interested in her at all. He didn’t even think that she was attractive. But he did enjoy her company. She was a good dancer, no, she was a great dancer, and he enjoyed dancing with her. She didn’t like him. He was not her type. She thought that he was just another rich snob. But she would dance with anyone willing to dance. Plus, her photo on social media with Aaron Wycliff, Party King, could only be good for her. The issue was that he was spending less and less time with his family, and more and more time with parties.

For example, on August 5th, their wedding anniversary, his wife and kids traveled to the big yacht. Aaron had their living quarters decorated with rose petals and other flowers. He had the best champagne that money could buy. He had scented candles. He had everything needed to set the perfect romantic setting. He still loved his wife and put a lot of thought into this evening. There was only one thing missing. Him.

As the hours went on and afternoon became evening, Laura did not even see her husband. The children did not see their father. He was on deck dancing and parting with Maxine. At 7pm the children went out of their room looking for Aaron. Camron, the oldest saw him dancing and took a picture of him.

Knocking on the door, they all called out, “Mom, Mom, you got to see this. Look. It's Dad.”

The picture was shocking to her. This sweet lady could have become very violent. One of the staff explained that she had nothing to worry about. “Maxine just likes to dance. It doesn’t matter who it was with. She would dance with the kids if they wanted to. Trust me. They don’t even like each other.”

This served as very little comfort to her. While she knew that she wasn’t losing him to another woman, he was losing him to the party life. It was their anniversary. He should have been trying to dance with her. It was time for her to put an end to all of this. As the sun started to set and she had not spent more that 5 minutes total with Aaron all day, she wrote a letter and asked the staff to deliver it to Aaron as soon as possible. She then boarded one of the lifeboats with her children and pulled away from the yacht.

It was 8pm and the live band was taking a 15-minute break. Some of the guests were starting to leave. This was fine with Aaron because the real party animals always came after 9pm. He was about to go check on Laura. Mike Reines was Chief of Staff, a title given because he was the first person Aaron hired. He was the one selected to hand the letter to Aaron.

“Mike!”, Aaron said, “What can I do for you, my friend?”

“I got something for you. Greg asked me to give this to you.”

“What is it.”

“Don’t know.”

He knew. He just didn’t want to tell him.

He handed him a letter inside a blank envelope. When He read it, his facial expression dropped. He looked as if he was more sick to the stomach than upset. He took off running to his sleeping quarters. He opened the door and called out, “Laura, sweetheart. Where are you?” But there was no answer. She was not there.

He went to the kid’s quarters, but they were also gone. He ran back on deck. With all of his friends and guest watching, he ran to the stern of the boat and without a second thought, he jumped into the water.

“Well done!”, said Mike. “Well done, my friend.”

One of the men on the boat was Alfred Raman. He asked Mike what he showed Aaron. Mike gave him the letter.

Dear Aaron:

There was a time that I had a husband who loved me more that anyone or anything else. He was given a huge chance in life being lifted from homelessness to business owner overnight. But the business went to his head. He started to love the business more than his wife and kids. That’s when my husband died, and a party animal was born. Since I no longer have my husband, there is no reason for me to stay here. On that note, I am taking the lifeboat. My children and I are leaving. If my husband is still alive, I will be at the stern for 15 minutes after you receive this letter. You have to make a choice. If you want the business, stay. Do nothing. Continue with your party. If you want your family, come after us.

Your Wife

Laura

Alfred smiled and gave a thumbs up to Aaron. “I told you not to let it go to your head.”

When Aaron reached the stern, the lifeboat had started to pull away. He didn’t waste any time. He jumped right into the water and started swimming. “Sweetheart. Baby. Laura, I choose you.”

“Don’t stop”, said Camron, “Slow down but don’t stop. Not yet. Let him work a little to catch up. Let him show us how much he loves us.”