Charles, who is 16 years old, was given the job of taking care of his grandmother Josephine’s yard after she died. He had no idea that this small act of kindness would lead him to a finding that would change his whole life.
Kevin, Charlie’s bigger brother, was very angry when he learnt that their grandmother had given them her garden as a gift. The garden didn’t seem valuable to Kevin. He thought their grandmother should have left them something more valuable. However, Charlie had a different view. His grandma loved her garden and it brought her a lot of happiness, he thought. He chose to take care of the yard in her honour.
Once Charlie got to work in the yard, he saw that the ground around the rosebushes looked a little loose. He chose to look into it more and began digging. He was shocked to find a note inside a broken glass jar. “Thank you, boys, for not forgetting me,” the note from his grandma said. I’m not cruel enough to leave you with just pickles and tomatoes!”
But Charlie was also happy and confused. He dug some more around the rosebushes and found 22 more jars, each one full of money and coins. But one jar was missing, and Charlie was determined to find it.
Charlie looked all over the yard and finally found the last jar buried near his grandmother’s favourite rosemary bush. To his surprise, though, the jar didn’t have any money in it. It had a scroll with Alex Johnson’s name and phone number on it instead.
Alex Johnson, who Charlie called, turned out to be a lawyer. Alex told Charlie that his grandma had gave him the family home and a valuable heirloom in a second part of her will. There was one catch, though: Charlie had to be 18 years old to claim his fortune.
He became the formal heir to his late grandmother’s house and heirloom on his 18th birthday, two years later. With the $22,000 he got as an inheritance, he fixed up the house and began a new life. It was Charlie’s brother Kevin who tried to claim the fortune, but he failed.
Charlie kept working hard in his grandmother’s yard, where he grew flowers and fruits from far away. He finally started sending fresh food to other states and did very well as a businessman. Even though Charlie was rich now, he stayed humble and kept his late grandmother’s wish in his heart. Throughout the year, he made sure that her garden was always full of lovely flowers, fruits, and veggies.
Charlie’s story shows us how important it is to respect and honour the last wishes of our ancestors. Plus, it shows that love and kindness that don’t expect anything in return can bring good things.
