is not gained quickly, nor is it lightly earned. I suspect that it was easier for Robin to have amassed his earthly fortune than it was for Samuel to have accumulated his spiritual treasure.
After a time, Robin resumed his travels. He never spoke much to me, or even his mother, about where he was going, or what he did when he got there. He was, however, gone for anywhere from a day or two to as much as a week at a time. Then, about four months after Samuel=s death, he had been home for only two hours when he called me aside.
AYou have never asked me about my travels,@ he began. AI was pleased because I did not want to talk about where I was going, or what I was doing. This was not because I was ashamed of my efforts, but because I was uncertain how they would turn out. I did not want to raise false hope for fear that if the hope was not realized, you would be disappointed. But now I can report that my efforts turned out well.@
Robin was beaming broadly. ACan I ask then what you were doing?@ I asked. AYou are obviously pleased with the results.@ I admit I was somewhat apprehensive because I was unsure whether Robin cared about the farm and its future, or if he was more interested in making as much money as he could in another business, perhaps in some distant city.
AYou remember David, of course,@ he began. AEarly in my travels I went to visit him to see how he was doing. Well, it turned out that he was doing rather well, though it was not easy for him.
AWhen he returned to his family, he found that the business his parents had built was in desperate shape. His uncle=s only interest in the business was to make as much money for himself as he could. Unfortunately, he had no talent as a manager and his greed led him to make some disastrous decisions that alienated some of his best customers. To top it off, he treated his workers badly, so the workers= morale fell. They became angry at the uncle and called a strike that almost totally destroyed what was left of the business.
ADavid arrived home just in time. The uncle actually welcomed him, having sense enough to know that if something dramatic did not happen soon to save the business, there would be no business to save.
AThe workers were overjoyed to see David and agreed to return to work while he tried to get things back in order. David contacted all of the firm=s customers, apologized for the way they had been treated, and offered them special bargains if they would give his business as second chance.
ADavid asked me if I would help him get the business back on its feet, given my experience in banking and finance. So on most of my trips I have visited with David. I am delighted to report that the business is doing well again. David gave his aunt and uncle sufficient income so they could be comfortable in return for the uncle=s agreeing to move to a city far away and not have any further contact with the business. Actually, David could have sued the uncle for the damage he did to the business, but David decided to put the sad episode behind and treat his aunt and uncle gently. It would not have helped the business, or anyone, to go to court, and the uncle did not have any money anyway to pay an award.
AHis sisters were glad to see David again because the aunt and uncle had become more and more demanding and angry as the business deteriorated. The family=s income fell so sharply that they were living hand to mouth when David came back. David forgave his sisters too for their siding with the uncle against him. He is also teaching them how to take an active role in running the business so that they could take over themselves if something were to happen to him. All in all, I think everyone learned a great deal from David=s absence.@
AI am delighted to hear this,@ I said, Abut I hope David himself learned a great deal from our experiences together.@
AYes, he did,@ Robin replied. AI don=t think he would have forgiven either his uncle or his sisters without our time together. Indeed, he might never even have gone home.
ABut there is more good news. Both David and I now are wealthy. We have much more money than we need to fulfill all our reasonable desires. We decided that we want to use our excess for good works of some sort. And so, during much of the time I spent with David, we talked about what such good works might be. How could we use our money to do the most good?@
My smile revealed my pleasure. This proved that Robin had changed dramatically since we found him at his bank. He now wanted to use his remarkable talents for the good of others rather than to accumulate wealth for himself. AThat=s wonderful news. So what are you and David planning to do?@
Robin smiled back at me. AYou remember how much poverty we saw as we drove back to my parents. You remember, too, Scott Wilson, the man you found lying by the side of the road, may have saved our lives by warning us to leave Hardwick immediately when we stopped to see what Daniel had done there. That convinced me that the kindness we show to others can bring blessings on ourselves, even if that is not why we did what we did.
ADaniel did enormous damage in Hardwick and in Danieltown. David and I want to help the people there rebuild and prosper again. We bought what was left of Daniel=s company and are cleaning up the mess Daniel made. We are giving the profits back to people in Hardwick and Danieltown so they can do the good things that Daniel had promised but never delivered.
AWe are also going to use this farm to teach poor people how to farm and grow their own food. You and your parents are welcome to stay here as long as you want to help David and me in our project. Of course, we will all give the best care we can of Martha.@
ADo you know that Martha will approve of your plans?@ I asked.
AI have mentioned them to her, and she is pleased that the farm will be used to help others to live the kind of life that she and Samuel enjoyed for so many years. Once we train someone to farm, we will make sure they have enough land to take care of their own needs. We are naming the training program we are starting in honor of Samuel. Martha was especially pleased with that.@
Only three days after this wonderful conversation, David himself drove to the farm to work with Robin and myself on bringing their school into being. My parents were, I suppose, the first fruits of their visionary plans because they had learned how to farm and had settled into an active life much different from their previous dreary existence. I truly believed they were happier now than they had been at any time since they married.
And all of these good things happened because I ventured into the forest to run away from parents I thought did not love me. And in the adventures that followed, I learned more about what love truly means and that they loved me after all.
The Magic Mirror Page 29