One Loss To Change Your Life

"Sir! Sir! Please could you just spare some change?" The man on the corner asked.

"Excuse me! I just want to get to work without being bothered by you panhandlers. No, I don't have any change!"

"Sir, please! I lost my job due to covid and I am on the verge of losing my house. I'm begging you please, even if it is just one dollar, anything will help."

"So I'm supposed to feel sorry for you because you chose the wrong career? It's not my problem pal. Figure it out like every other working American is." Sam snapped.

As Michael bowed his head in disappointment, he slowly rose his nose up just to utter these words. "Well Today, I don't wish you well. I wish you the day you deserve."

"Yeah whatever buddy, I wish you the day you deserve too!" Sam smirked. As Sam walked away to go into his office his wallet began to slip from his back pocket. As soon as he stepped onto the stairs it immediately fell onto the ground. As Michael turned his head in discouragement, he quickly ran to pick up the wallet.

"Sir! Hey! Hey! Sir!"

"Didn't I tell you to leave me the hell alone! If you bother me again I will call the police!"

"I was just trying to tell you… you know what? Nevermind."

Michael walked away to the bench by the street and began contemplating opening the wallet.

"God I'm a firm believer in karma, but I did try to give it back to him, I did. You say that nothing is placed on us that we are not strong enough to carry, but I am at my breaking point. I'm sorry but I need this money."

Michael opened the wallet to discover over five thousand dollars in cash. As he sat there on the bench he decided to take only 10 dollars from his wallet and drove to the closest convenience store. Michael purchased a sandwich, a drink, and 2 lottery tickets. As soon as he arrived home to his family, he told his wife what happened that day and asked what he should do with the rest of his wallet.

"Honey, I don't want to keep this man's wallet. I mean I'm tired of struggling too, but I don't want to have a come-up like this. Just not like this."

"I understand, but Michael we really need that money. We are running out of money in the bank to feed our children and with the business going under we are running out of options. I'm not working because of being a stay-at-home mom and I just always trusted we would be okay. I mean, who could plan for this ya know?"

"Well, I took ten dollars from his wallet earlier and bought myself lunch, along with two lottery tickets."

"Michael seriously? Who are we kidding here the odds are like 1 in a million, so what makes you think we would ever win the lottery?"

"I just believe God will make a way for us, and when he does I will return this man's wallet."

Michael's wife turned on the local news to check for the winning lottery numbers. Their ticket displayed the numbers 8, 28, 43, 12, and 3.

"Honey come here, they're about to say the winning lottery numbers."

Michael walked in and looked at the tv with anticipation. The news anchor came on and said "Thank you as always for keeping up with your local community. Tune in tomorrow at 7 and 9 am for your morning weather alerts. Stay tuned for your winning lottery numbers." The numbers one by one began scrolling across the screen. 12……..3……….28……….

"OMG! Michael look!"

"Sarah be quiet!"

"43…….."

"MICHAEL!"

"And finally… 8…."

"Did we just win?! Did we just win?!"

"Honey, I think we just won!" Michael screamed.

Sarah and Michael hugged each other in disbelief as they cried in each other's arms. The year had been tough and they barely were making it. Even after winning millions of dollars, the very first thing Michael could think of was how to pay it forward to others.

Later on that day Sam walked into his work cafeteria to order lunch. As soon as he reached for his back pocket he realized his wallet was missing.

"Is everything all right?" Sam's boss asked.

"No. It appears I have misplaced my wallet and don't have any other cash to purchase my lunch."

"That's no problem, your lunch is on me today."

"I'd hate to trouble you, but I can pay you back in the morning. I'm sure it's around here somewhere."

Sam looked all through his office that day, but his wallet was nowhere to be found. He even stayed an hour after work to try and locate it, but it still didn't turn up anywhere. Later that night Sam checked his mail and received a bill from his daughter's university. Sam's daughter had a bill of $18,347.00 that would be due in 4 weeks or else she would be unable to return the following semester. He picked up the phone and immediately called his daughter's mother.

"Hello…"

"Please tell me you have something to pay towards Lionah's tuition."

"No, I don't Sam. Real Estate has not been doing so well the last 6 months."

"Well Lionah's next semester is "$18,347.00 and I don't have it right now. I'm not even sure I will have it in the next 4 weeks. I have a card from a new investor I am supposed to set up a meeting with, but I lost my wallet. So, until I find it everything is at a standstill on my next deal. That's the only contact number I have for him."

"You seriously didn't save his number anywhere else?"

"I was planning to put him in my CRM as soon as I got to the office but I didn't get a chance. I have no idea where I even lost it."

"Our daughter can't be pulled from school, she would be devastated, Sam."

"I know this already, I know! I'll figure something out okay. I always do."

"How much do you have now?"

"I believe I have about 12,000 in my account, but I still have to pay my mortgage, Jenna. I don't near have enough to survive and take care of myself, while also paying her tuition. But I'll figure it out okay, I gotta go."

"Bye Sam…"

"Bye."

The very next day Sam's boss walked up to him and asked "So slugger did you find your wallet?"

"No, I haven't, I've looked everywhere."

"Well, I'm sure it's here somewhere just keep looking. I'm sure someone will turn it in if they find it. In the meantime, have you set up a meeting with that new investor you were telling me about? The CEO has been on my tail all morning to let him know when you have a meeting confirmed."

"Oh yes, I...um...already spoke to him. He is supposed to reach back out to me this afternoon and let me know what day his schedule is clear."

"Awesome! I knew I could count on you. Well, keep me posted and shoot me an email as soon as you know."

"Will do!" Sam gruntled.

For the rest of the day, Sam paced through his entire office looking for his wallet. His job was on the line if he didn't get that meeting scheduled. Once again, he was left without any trace of his wallet and left the office empty-handed. As soon as he approached his car there was a black notebook on the car with a note.

"I just would like you to know I tried to offer you your wallet, but you were so focused on belittling me you never once noticed I was only trying to help. Yesterday, my wife and I won the lottery and I thought about blessing you. Only to remember the way you treated me. I realized by doing so I would only be enabling you to treat others the way you did me. So instead, I have a proposition. Inside the black notebook, you will find 10 things you must do for other people that are less fortunate than you. If you complete all ten tasks, then at the very end I will return your wallet and a check for $20,000. If not, well then I guess the loss was never mine."

Sam screamed and kicked the side of his tire "Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!! Why is this happening to me? I just need my damn wallet back please for the love of God, please!"

After screaming in the middle of the parking lot he finally removed his ego and opened the notebook. The first page read….

"No matter where life takes us, the humility we lead our lives with will always be the determining factor of how we live. It's time that you learn to anchor yourself with it again. Please complete the following steps and your wallet shall be returned to you.

1. Find a homeless person and have lunch with them. Write down the story you learned about how they became homeless.

2. Go home and look in your closet. Remove anything you no longer need and donate it to your local shelter.

3. Walk up to ten random people and tell them 1 thing you admire about them.

4. Call your parents and tell them you love them.

5. Write a thank you letter to your local hospital and drop it off in your local emergency room to show appreciation for our medical staff.

6. If you have children, pull out their baby books and find 5 of your favorite pictures of them growing up. If you don't, forward this reminder to a friend so they may do the same.

7. Change something about yourself you were always scared to do.

8. Call one of your enemies and tell them you're sorry.

9. Visit a gravesite of someone who has passed away and put flowers on their grave.

10. Look in the mirror and say to yourself "The words I speak to others are the seeds I plant inside myself."

"If you have made it to the bottom of this list I now ask you to flip to the very last page."

Sam flipped the notebook to the very last page and a check fell out for $20,000. One final note read at the very end of the page.

"Your wallet will be delivered to your office tomorrow with everything inside of it including the ten dollars I borrowed. I went ahead and enclosed the check because I'm a man of my word. So I guess this is the time where you show God, are you a man of yours?"

The End.

Written By: Jennifer L. Sanders