Happened years ago in Goa ........................
Mother (in her mid 30s) and daughter 8 years old ran into Big Joe and got the smile of their lives. The response of the Mother was to catch my eye then dart her eyes to the floor in a total non-confront besieged by terror. But my smile is so contagious and the welcome so YUGE that she lifted her eyes once again to behold big Joe and in that ogonblick she saw ZERO JUDGEMENT and started to relax.
They had just arrived in Goa and were looking for a job to get by. They had no place to live having just arrived and on very tight finances.
I looked at the little girl and introduced myself and asked which hotel they would be staying at?
Her response floored Fibo! She said-ed. "My Mummy has only 150 rupees left, we might have to sleep on the beach"
So I asked the little girl, "that's not possible, how much do YOU have in your own purse? I bet its thousands of rupees!" She shrieked, "No, I only have 4 Rupees"
While all this was going on, the Mother's face was streaming tears of embarrassment and shame ...........................
So I asked the little girl, "what would she say if suddenly, out of nowhere a thousand rupees were to appear in her little purse?"
THE PERENNIAL BEAR MARKET of the little girl was at that serendipitous moment of reversing on a dime. The smile was so infectious, so magnificente that Fibo threw his spirit in full at it!
General manager at the Taj Mahal Hotel at that time was none other than the hubby of a friend of big Joe. Secured a job and place for the Mummy and girl to stay with 2 months advance on salary.
Took them out to eat a first square meal in months most likely. The little girl's jowls were screeching with internal pressure as she gobbled the delightful fishes. The far away look in her eyes was so tsunami-ed by hunger pangs!!!!
When I left Goa days later, I took her to the Bank of India and opened an account for her and deputized her to an investment director and made her take a solemn oath that she would grow up to be a financial responsible adult and learn everything about money/business she could.
And that she would write to me every week with progress reports and questions that plague her.
WE was now friends!
Fast forward. The Mummy and her live in Brentwood California and Mummy has a 150k/yr job and the little girl is loaded with her own job and investment income in real estate and a couple side businesses
When they invite me over for dinner even though there are other guests, the girl grabs my hand and guides me to the chair right beside her and serves me the meal items FIRST! Every 20 minutes or so during the meal, she just gets up out of her chair to put her arms around me and kiss me on the cheek and whisper, "I love you Uncle Joe"
Would a billion dollars be worth more than this? NO way, Jose!
![Smile :) :)](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)