Can a person’s greed for riches blind them so miserably that they destroy someone else’s dreams to build theirs? In July 2021, Florida-based real estate tycoon Elliot Morris happened to shatter a poor old man’s dreams to fulfill his pursuit of wealth.

Elliot was looking for a perfect landscape to build a deluxe mall in the city when his eyes fell upon old Joe Brooke’s land. The young builder loved the location and fixed his mind to raising his new mall there.

He decided to tear down the old man’s house on the plot. When old Joe objected to it, Elliot saw him as nothing more than a thorn in his way that was easy to get rid of…

“Please, I beg of you. I don’t have anybody, and this house is the only treasured memory I have of my late wife,” Joe begged Elliot, who had visited with his men. “I have nowhere to go. Please don’t make me homeless.”

“How did you get my mom’s photo?” the man asked old Joe. “That’s me with her. Do you know my mom? What is your relationship with her?”

But Elliot turned a deaf ear to the poor old man’s pleas. “Look here, old man. I already talked to the mayor, and he is on my side. I’m bringing this thing down in two weeks. All you’ve got is 14 days to pack your stuff and leave with whatever money I give you. Is it clear?”

Poor Joe was worried. He refused to accept a dime in exchange for his beloved house and kept crying. But Elliot was far from kind and walked away, grinning. “Two weeks and I’ll be back,” Joe heard the rude rich man’s faint voice from outside.

Joe’s house was a bit farther away from his clustered neighborhood, so nobody stepped forward in his favor. The two weeks were nothing short of nightmarish for the poor old man. He hoped something would happen and change the rich man’s mind. He anticipated a miracle and never packed his things. But before he knew it, the day for the demolition had arrived.

“Please, I beg you! Please don’t destroy my house!” old Joe pleaded with Elliot and his men, who arrived two weeks later with heavy machinery outside his house to tear it down.

“Didn’t I tell you to pack your things?” Elliot retorted. “It’s not my problem anymore. Here, take this check and leave. I don’t have time to listen to your silly, old stories.”

Elliot ordered one of his men to take old Joe to the nursing facility. He handed out the check for the house, but the old man refused to take it.

Before leaving, a teary-eyed Joe looked at Elliot and said, “You’ve changed a lot, young man. Money has blinded you and ruined your soul…You cannot buy everything with money.”

“What rubbish! Take this old man from here,” Elliot ordered. He brushed Joe’s words as nothing and walked further to watch the house being torn down. Joy filled his heart as he saw the bricks and roof chipping away from the building, crashing onto the ground.

“I’ll be back in a while. Keep working, and do not touch anything until I arrive,” he said, driving past the dusty house in ruins.

That evening, Elliot returned to the demolished spot to celebrate his feat. “Getting rid of that old thorn was so easy!” he exclaimed as he walked over the broken bricks.

Just then, he stumbled upon the broken glass of a photo frame. He looked at the photo and gasped in shock.

“Mom? What is her photo doing here?” he said, picking up the picture. Elliot dusted it and realized it was an old photo of his mom with a baby.

“That’s me,” he exclaimed again. “But what is our photo doing in this old man’s house? I have to find out,” he said and immediately drove to the nursing home to see Joe.

“You? Why have you come here? Aren’t you happy yet?” the old man cried after seeing the young builder. “What more have you come to destroy?”

Joe refused to look at Elliot, who held his hand and showed him the photo he’d recovered from the demolished ruins.

“How did you get my mom’s photo?” he asked. “That’s me with her. Do you know my mom? What is your relationship with her?” Elliot was furious. He had known that his mother was a single parent, and finding her picture in Joe’s house raised many questions in his mind. “Tell me…how do you know my mother?”

Joe, who remained silent, finally spoke out, revealing something Elliot never knew.

“I found your mother Samantha on the road with a baby in her arms 30 years ago,” Joe said. “I was on my way home from my wife’s funeral and found your mom hopeless and drenched in the rain while trying to protect you.”

As Elliot heard this, tears slowly started to fill his eyes. “Then what happened?” he curiously asked.

“I took her in and gave her shelter. Her boyfriend, your dad, had kicked her out for another woman,” Joe narrated. “Samantha lived in my house for five years, and I treated her like my daughter.”

“But if she lived with you, why did she move out? We had a bigger house,” Elliot asked, still doubtful of old Joe’s revelation. “Is there something I’m missing?”

“I bought her a new house and helped her start a small business from my savings. She grew into a successful businesswoman but never forgot this old man. Samantha often visited me until she died ten years ago,” Joe explained. “I had also been to her funeral, but who would notice this poor, old man. You had grown into a successful, rich man, and I was happy to see how she raised you.”

At this point, Elliot’s heart broke. He recalled his mother once telling him about a loving father who was behind her success. But all this while, he had no idea that she had been talking about old Joe.

Guilty and heartbroken, Elliot decided to mend his mistake. The next day, he put up an “Under Construction” board on Joe’s property and ordered his men to build a new house there. In less than four months, a beautiful home replaced the one he demolished.

Elliot gifted this house to Joe and apologized to him for being so ignorant and forgetful of his past. He also promised to do his best to return the old man’s kindness. But the humble man he was, Joe forgave the young builder and refused any form of help.

“You are my grandson, and I will accept only this house from you, and nothing more. I do not expect any material help from you other than your love,” Joe said, creating a massive impact on Elliot. “You are always welcome to visit this old man as my grandson, not as a wealthy man filled with guilt. Even your mom wanted to help me, and I had told her the same!”

Joe happily moved back to his new house and lived a modest life. He inspired Elliot and taught him that money perishes but not compassion and love.

In the end, Elliot built a couple of retirement homes for older adults in the city. He helped people in need and never tore down another house that belonged to someone else unless they were willing.

What can we learn from this story?

• Do not ruin someone else’s happiness to build your dreams. In Elliot’s efforts to build his mall, he destroyed old Joe’s beloved house. He did not consider the old man’s pleas and ruined his happiness to fulfill his own.
• Create something useful for others when you get a chance. When Elliot realized his mistake, he apologized to Joe and built a house for him. And because he had the resources, he did his best to help the needy.

This piece is inspired by stories from the everyday lives of our readers and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only. Share your story with us; maybe it will change someone’s life.