Dad's Tin Box

He kept it hidden for over 20 years and brought it out when he was laid off and facing health issues. When he asked for a dreaded “family meeting” we all cringed thinking it was about the usual - chores, money, attitude, etc. But when we sat down and he put a well-worn tin box on the table, we knew this was something else. He looked at us and began to explain…

“When you were born,” he said, looking at our son, “I was working away from home and I got a call from Mom crying and saying she needed me to come home. I realized then that I was now responsible for the well-being of both of you and I would have to find a way to make a living that worked for us as a family." He looked at our daughter and contiued,  "And then when you were born, we were in the first economic recession in the late 80’s and I knew that I could only make so much income.  And because I don’t read and write well, I knew I would have to work with my back and my hands, so the only choice I had was to try to save for future needs.”

“For the next 20 years, I put whatever I could in this tin every week; sometimes it was $10’s & $20’s, sometimes just a few dollars. As it got full, I exchanged it for $100 bills; but never once did I take any out and rarely counted it. Now that I am laid off and have some medical bills coming, I decided it was time for us to use it.”

As he opened the tin, a wad of $100 bills fell out; both kids looked at him in astonishment as he told them there was over $10,000 in the tin. Our daughter began to cry and jumped up to hug him; our son sat back on the couch in disbelief and my jaw fell open. I thought of the times we could’ve used it – all those payments for braces, student loans, vehicle repairs, overdue bills, much-needed vacations – and how hard it must’ve been for him to continue to save no matter what. We were all in tears as he handed the tin to our son and said “I hope you use it well, you may need it someday like I did.”