"Can I borrow $25?"

[natalia]

Can I borrow $25?

A man came home from work late, tired and irritated, to find his 5-year old son waiting for him at the door.

SON: 'Daddy, may I ask you a question?'

DAD: 'Yeah sure, what it is?' replied the man.

SON: 'Daddy, how much do you make an hour?'

DAD: 'That's none of your business. Why do you ask such a thing?' the man said angrily.

SON: 'I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?'

DAD: 'If you must know, I make $50 an hour.'

SON: 'Oh,' the little boy replied, with his head down.

SON: 'Daddy, may I please borrow $25?'

The father was furious, 'If the only reason you asked that is so you can borrow some money to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you are being so selfish. I don't work hard everyday for such childish frivolities.'

The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door.

The man sat down and started to get even angrier about the little boy's questions. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money?

After about an hour or so, the man had calmed down , and started to think:

Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that $25.00 and he really didn't ask for money very often The man went to the door of the little boy's room and opened the door.

'Are you asleep, son?' He asked.

'No daddy, I'm awake,' replied the boy.

'I've been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier' said the man. 'It's been a long day and I took out my aggravation on you. Here's the $25 you asked for.'

The little boy sat straight up, smiling. 'Oh, thank you daddy!' he yelled. Then, reaching under his pillow he pulled out some crumpled up bills.

The man saw that the boy already had money, started to get angry again.

The little boy slowly counted out his money, and then looked up at his father.

'Why do you want more money if you already have some?' the father grumbled.

'Because I didn't have enough, but now I do,' the little boy replied.

'Daddy, I have $50 now. Can I buy an hour of your time? Please come home early tomorrow. I would like to

have dinner with you.'

The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little son, and he begged for his forgiveness.

It's just a short reminder to all of you working so hard in life. We should not let time slip through our fingers without having spent some time with those who really matter to us, those close to our hearts. Do remember to share that $50 worth of your time with someone you love.

If we die tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of hours. But the family & friends we leave behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives.

[Keith]

A wake up call for all parents.

My little girl is 2 years old and i spend every moment i can with her.

Parents please make the time to spend with your children. They are an absolute blessing from God and our time on this earth is so short.

[aashiqmizaaj]

Originally Posted by Keith A wake up call for all parents. My little girl is 2 years old and i spend every moment i can with her. Parents please make the time to spend with your children. They are an absolute blessing from God and our time on this earth is so short.

It's a challenge for sure. I try to do the same - weekends and evenings are solely dedicated to my two kids - and the wife - can't forget her.

It's funny, you get caught up in work so that you can provide for them, but what they really want is you - not the stuff you get for them (well partly )

[pakistanbest]

a great message and well Keith..well said..Children are a gift from the Almighty..dont have kids if u cant devote enough time to them..hopefully in the future when it is my turn to be a father Insh'Allah i would be able to have proper time management and ensure i devote enough time to my wife and kids..as money is one thing but the people u love such as ur wife and kids is another..no money comes close to them

a truly great story...got me thinking...thanks Natalia for another contructive and good thread

[Salman]

I see my daughter for roughly 1-2 hours per day Mon-Fri as i get home about 6 and it's bed time for her at 8pm...

feel guilty as out of those two hours, i'm on PP for a fair chunk these days... and she is hovering around me full of energy..

The weekend , we try and spend as much time together as possible...

[Daoud]

My 12 year old cousin had this email and he told me to have a look and tell him what I feel after it. So at the end he asked did I feel anything and I said no but thats cause Im evil. I asked him what he felt and he pointed towards his heart and said I felt it there and called me evil.

[nazimcricket]

The lesson I have learnt from this thread is that I am a lousy dad.

Not once have I been offered money for my time by my family!!!

[12thMan]

But they do want the PS3 and trip to Disneyland. Disneyland for a family can be $200 for one day visit (no hotel involved).

The 8 pm sleeping time is just not right and causes problems or maybe less stress for parents so they make it early bed time. 8 pm is dinner time in Pakistan and after that you get an hour or two. Strange that me growing up don't remember having a sleeping time. There was a get up time

[natalia]

Originally Posted by pakistanbest a truly great story...got me thinking...thanks Natalia for another contructive and good thread

no problem mate.