This is the story of a young teenage girl who stayed alone in a rusty house after her parents passed away. But when new neighbors arrived, something remarkable happened. One cold evening, Sophia Miller got up from her bed because she couldn’t sleep. The eight-year-old was thinking about her parents who died in a car crash six months ago. From the moment they passed away, she lived alone in the old house they built on the outskirts of California....CONTINUE READING
Although things were tough for her, she didn’t want to end up in an orphanage home, so she decided to get herself a job in the city. However, finding one wasn’t easy. Fortunately, one bright morning she came across a wallet she found on the floor. She realized it contained a good amount of money. However, the well-mannered orphan girl returned the wallet to the man without thinking twice.
“Thank you very much. This is the first time I have met someone with such sincerity. What can I do to repay your kindness?” said Mr. Roberts.
So Sophia explained her situation to him. Her story touched his heart, and he offered her a job with a good salary at his restaurant. The teenager who couldn’t hide her excitement accepted his offer immediately. She thanked the old man because he gave her a source of livelihood. In no time, the restaurant owner loved her because she was a hard worker. Sofia kept on living in her parents’ house because it was close to work.
However, one evening she noticed the door of the building next door was wide open, but she didn’t know why. A few days later, she realized new tenants had just moved into the house. One morning before heading to work, she visited them. As she got to the entrance, she found the door open again, and as she was about to speak, a skinny little girl touched her from behind. Even though Sofia was uneasy at this point, she turned back and smiled.
“Uh, hello. I’m your next-door neighbor. I found the door open, so I came to visit,” she said while trying to stay calm.
Just then, the young man who was also there smiled and spoke to her. “Hi, I’m Andrew, and this is my little sister Emma. It’s nice to meet you. I made this food for my mother so she could eat. She is very sick and can’t feed herself,” he explained as he took the food off the stove.
Sofia felt sorry for the mother’s situation. She realized they had to stay indoors every day to look after their sick mom. After talking to them for a while, she bid them goodbye and went to work.
A few days later, it was time for her to get her first salary. She was so excited, and when the day ended, Mr. Roberts gave her a brown envelope filled with cash. She realized the money he gave her surpassed her salary. She didn’t understand why he overpaid her. However, she went to his office and thanked him. The old man only smiled and said in his deep, calm voice, “Hey, that’s fine. You know, you remind me of my daughter when she was young. I’m almost 72, and she must be over 40 now.” As soon as he spoke, tears came running down his cheeks.
Sofia couldn’t understand why the man cried. That day, she told another worker at the restaurant what had happened. So he explained what had happened to Mr. Roberts some years back. Over two decades ago, the restaurant owner had a minor argument with his daughter, Maria Smith. Sadly, after that, she ran away with her irresponsible fiancée to another town. Even though the elderly man searched for his daughter, he never saw her again. He was so devastated and prayed that one day she would come back home, but years passed, and she never returned.
When Sofia heard the sad story, she felt sorry for him. After finishing her job for the day, Sophia left for home. Along the way, the thoughts of her new neighbors came into her mind. She knew things were hard for them and their sick mom. So she got some food for them, and when she got home, she headed straight to their apartment. Andrew and Emma were grateful for the food. Thanks to her, they had a healthy meal for the first time in a long while.
The same night, Andrew had a heart-to-heart conversation with Sofia. He told her how he, together with his little sister and mother, came from another town to start a new life. This was because his dad never cared for them and spent all the family savings on drinks. On that account, his mom had to do many jobs to cater to him and his younger sister. Unfortunately, she became very sick, Andrew added, as his voice trembled. “The doctors also said my mother needs surgery, but we don’t even have enough money to feed ourselves. I would have looked for a job, but I have to look after her and my little sister every day.”
Sofia felt sorry for their family and realized he wasn’t the only one who had been through tough times. She was speechless for a while, and then told Andrew that she would help his mother’s situation. The young man wasn’t sure what she could do, but he thanked her.
The next morning, she went to Mr. Roberts’s office with tears streaming down her face. She explained the situation of her neighbor’s mother to him and begged for a loan. She told him she would gradually pay up the money with her monthly salary. The old man listened to her carefully, and after a long pause, he said in his calm voice, “I’ll help this poor woman because I may be in a similar situation someday too. You don’t have to worry. I’ll ask my manager to send them money to the hospital’s account.” Sofia couldn’t hide her excitement and gratitude. She embraced Mr. Roberts, who began to cry because of her tenderness.
When it was evening, the young woman couldn’t wait to share the good news with Andrew and his sister. However, when she got there, she was stunned to see them looking sad.
“My mom is very sick, and she has to be taken to the clinic,” little Emma said as she tried not to cry.
At that very moment, Sofia told the little girl something that made her happy. “It’s okay. I found the money for the surgery. Your mother will be fine soon.”
Fortunately, Mr. Roberts kept his words. The next day, he transferred the money into the hospital’s account. A few days later, doctors performed the needed operation on Andrew’s sick mother. Thankfully, it went very well, and she was recovering well too. After the successful operation, the young man went to Mr. Roberts’s office with Sofia so he could thank the philanthropist who helped his mother. As soon as he walked into the old man’s office, his facial expression changed.
“What is wrong, young man? Is your mother okay?” Mr. Roberts asked, looking concerned.
“I don’t know how to say this, but I think I’ve seen you somewhere before. There’s a picture my mom gave me before her operation. I have to get it and show you,” Andrew said.
He went home, got the picture, and then showed it to the old man. By the time he looked at the picture, his face became pale, and his heart was aching. Mr
. Robert saw his young self standing by his wife on their wedding day. The photo had disappeared the day his daughter left home many years ago. After he got over his initial shock, he asked the young man for his mother’s name.
“My mother’s name is Maria Smith,” Andrew answered, not knowing what would happen next.
Sofia held her face in surprise while Mr. Roberts walked toward the young lad and embraced them. As you can imagine, Andrew was confused at this point. However, when he heard the restaurant owner’s sad story, he realized that his mother was the old man’s daughter. When all doubts were finally put to rest, Mr. Roberts visited his daughter in the hospital. When he finally saw her, he was short of words.
“My God, sweetheart, it’s really you. It’s been such a long time. I have missed you so much,” the elderly man said as he embraced his daughter in tears. The woman who recognized her father began to cry as well. She held his hands, and they asked each other for forgiveness. At that moment, Mr. Roberts realized that hiring Sofia was a blessing in disguise. After many years, he reunited him with his daughter and two grandchildren. For the young woman, her connection with Andrew became stronger, and they kept on seeing each other. After a few years, they tied the knot, which made Mr. Roberts and his daughter very pleased.
At the wedding, Mr. Roberts said to Sofia, “Who would have thought a chance meeting could change my life forever? You know what, scratch that. I don’t think it was a coincidence that we met each other. I believe it was meant to be. You might think that I’ve done a lot of good things for you, but you’ve done more for me than you could ever imagine. Thank you and welcome. I am proud to call you my family.”
So, what have you learned from this story? Thanks for watching, see you next time.
