by Jim Stovall
The room took on an awkward silence, and I nodded to Jason. He appeared a bit hesitant and flustered, which may have been a result of my verbose legal admonitions.
He cleared his throat and began.
“The next lesson my grandfather gave to me was the gift of giving. It is a really important part of the Ultimate Gift, because the gift was given to me, and I will be giving it away to others from now on. Here’s what he had to say.”
Jason started the DVD player, and Red appeared, saying, “This month, I want you to learn about the gift of giving. This is another one of those paradoxical principles like we talked about several months ago. Conventional wisdom would say that the less you give, the more you have. The converse is true. The more you give, the more you have. Abundance creates the ability to give; giving creates more abundance. I don’t mean this simply in financial terms. This principle is true in every area of your life.
“It is important to be a giver and a receiver. Jason, financially, I have given you everything that you have in this world. But I violated the principle involved in the gift of giving. I gave you money and things out of a sense of obligation, not a true spirit of giving. You received those things with an attitude of entitlement and privilege instead of gratitude. Our attitudes have robbed us both of the joy involved in the gift of giving.
“It is important when you give something to someone that it be given with the right spirit, not out of a sense of obligation. I learned to give to people my whole life. I cannot imagine being deprived of the privilege of giving things and part of myself to other people.
“One of the key principles in giving, however, is that the gift must be yours to give—either something you earned or created or maybe, simply, part of yourself.”
My attitude transformed during the viewing of that video. Maybe it was the words and spirit of my best and oldest friend, or maybe it was because as the video was playing I had glanced at the contents of the envelope that had been slipped under my door.
I gathered my thoughts, resolving to have a more cordial, giving tone than I had displayed earlier.
Just as I was beginning to speak, Miss Hastings interrupted, saying, “Mr. Hamilton, if you will allow me.”
I didn’t have a clue what she had in mind or why she was interrupting, but I had discovered over the years that Miss Hastings was generally in the right place at the right time and was prepared to do the right thing. So I nodded and sat back to listen.
She picked up a file from the table in front of her and flipped it open, announcing, “Mr. Hamilton has been traveling for the past few weeks and asked me to bring his mail to Anderson House with me so we could review it. I thought now might be a convenient time.”
“Miss Hastings,” I admonished, “I hardly think this is an appropriate …”
She held up a hand and smiled, displaying a familiar twinkle in her eye, and continued. “Sir, if you will indulge me.”
I sighed, nodded, and prepared to listen. When you’ve been a friend and colleague with someone for decades, they earn the benefit of the doubt and a bit of latitude. Miss Hastings was certainly entitled to a bit of patience on my part.
She picked up one of the letters from the file and explained, “After our last session regarding the gift of dreams, Mr. Hamilton received this letter, which I felt I should share with everyone.”
As if on cue, everyone interrupted and objected in unison. I couldn’t imagine what was going on, but Miss Hastings begged everyone’s indulgence, asked everyone to trust her, and began reading the letter.
“‘Dear Mr. Hamilton, after Joey’s last session on the gift of dreams and after learning about Stephanie’s medical bills and her family’s financial situation, I wanted to write to you to formally request funds from the Red Stevens trust to cover all family expenses and medical bills, which may include bringing in some specialists to help in what we hope and pray will be Stephanie’s full recovery.
“‘Thank you for handling this and for all you have done for my grandfather, me, and everyone we serve.
“‘Jason Stevens.’”
Miss Hastings set the letter back on the table, and everyone looked toward Jason. He appeared somewhat confused and slightly offended, saying, “Miss Hastings, that was a confidential letter I wrote to Mr. Hamilton as my attorney regarding legal matters involving my grandfather’s trust. The entire matter was to be handled anonymously, and—”
I interrupted Jason, directing my gaze to Miss Hastings, saying, “Miss Hastings, Jason is absolutely right. Under no circumstances should you have read the contents of that …”
Miss Hastings just smiled beatifically, signaled for silence, and continued. “Gentlemen, I would totally agree with you under normal circumstances, but you two have not been privileged to have read this next letter.”
She picked up another letter from the file and began reading aloud.
“‘Dear Theodore, I appreciate our long association as I am privileged to be a co-laborer with you in the service of our friend and employer, Miss Sally May Anderson.
“‘As you know, I was left certain discretionary funds for the purpose of maintaining and promoting Anderson House. I am going to beg your indulgence and request the widest possible discretion as I allocate funding for Miss Stephanie’s medical care and family expenses.
“‘I appreciate your attention to this matter.
“‘Respectfully, Hawthorne.’”
Hawthorne gazed at Miss Hastings questioningly as she picked up another letter and continued.
“‘My Dear Mr. Hamilton, as you are aware, our library at Anderson House remains in a constant state of flux. New volumes are acquired while others become redundant or outdated. Recently, it has come to my attention that several of our antique medical texts—which have been the envy of numerous dealers—may have reached a point in the marketplace where they should be liquidated.
“‘One of the institutions that has always expressed an interest in acquiring these particular volumes is an eminent university hospital and research facility. I have contacted them regarding Anderson House donating these particular books with the stipulation that they would cover Miss Stephanie’s medical bills and give her physicians access to their cutting-edge research doctors.
“‘I’m writing you to ask you to formalize this transaction in a legal document covering each of these issues.
“‘Sincerely, Oscar.’”
Oscar nodded and gave Miss Hastings a knowing look as she set his letter down and picked up another.
“‘Mr. Hamilton, I know that I have not been very respectful or easy to deal with, so you probably won’t appreciate me asking for a favor, but Stephanie and her family need my help.
“‘I am not sure what, if any, inheritance I will receive from my great-grandmother, and I have no idea when I will get it, but is there any way I can borrow it or cash it in to help with medical bills and expenses?
“‘Thanks, Joey.’”
Miss Hastings turned to me with tears in her eyes and said, “Sir, I trust you might excuse my revealing the contents of your confidential correspondence.”
I brushed a tear from my eye and nodded affirmatively.
Miss Hastings smiled and said, “I just felt that these letters demonstrated a complete understanding and are the absolute epitome of what Red Stevens had in mind in light of the gift of giving.”
I cleared my throat and spoke.
“I want to thank each of you for your letters, and I want to thank Miss Hastings for sharing them here today. While they do demonstrate the spirit and essence of giving defined by Red Stevens and demonstrated throughout her life by Miss Sally, your letters are incomplete until I share this one.”
I slipped the envelope from my pocket, unfolded the page inside, and spoke. “It reads, ‘Mr. Hamilton, when we all told our dreams at breakfast, you didn’t have one that you shared, so
if you don’t have your own, you should come to Disney World with me.’”
I wiped away a few more tears with my handkerchief, paused to compose myself, then continued.
“The correspondence is signed ‘Stephanie’ and features an outstanding colorful illustration of Mickey Mouse.”
I held up the page for all to see. Stephanie beamed from where she sat in her wheelchair at the breakfast table.
I addressed her. “Young lady, in my office downtown, I have a number of photographs and mementoes I have collected over the years that I display on my proverbial Wall of Fame. This letter will be appropriately framed and proudly displayed on that wall between the photographs of our current governor and the President of the United States.”
Stephanie clapped and squealed, proclaiming, “Wow! Way cool.”
It was indeed.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
The Legacy of Gratitude
While we are grateful for the legacies others have left us, the only tribute we can give to those who have gone before is to leave our own legacy.
The reports over the next few weeks informed me that Jason and Joey were spending a lot of time together, both around Anderson House as well as at the children’s hospital, assisting Stephanie and her parents. Apparently an old man like me and videos from my dear friend Red Stevens could only teach Joey so much, but a young man like Jason was able to relate to him in tangible ways.
Several days before our next scheduled breakfast meeting, Joey and Jason asked Claudia to pack enough food to last them for a couple of days, and they hiked across the Anderson House property toward a small spring-fed lake near the distant boundary where a tiny cabin had stood since the main house was built over 150 years before. The two young men spent the following days and nights hiking, fishing, swimming, and sitting by a fire talking late into the night. I think it took both Jason and Joey some time to realize how similar they were and how much they had in common.
Growing up poor the way I did, I don’t think I could have related to the trials and tribulations faced by young people of extreme wealth. Wealth comes with privileges but also with many responsibilities and a number of burdens.
In the ensuing years, I have noticed that people with a certain amount of fame, success, or wealth have to find someone who has attained a similar station in life if they’re going to relate their own problems and challenges.
Later, I learned that one evening in the cabin by the lake, Jason shared the video his grandfather had made for him about the gift of gratitude. Using his cell phone, Jason had somehow stored all of Red’s video messages so they were with Jason at all times.
I remembered being an observer in the corner the day Red Stevens delivered that message in front of the camera we had set up in a conference room in our law offices. I will always remember his image on the screen and his valuable words for his grandson …
“When you prepare your will and a video like this, you automatically have to think about your entire life. I have been so many places and experienced so many things, it is hard to remember that I have only lived one lifetime.
“I remember, as a young man, being so poor that I had to do day labor for food to eat, and had to sleep along the side of the road. I also remember being in the company of kings and presidents and knowing all of the material things this life has to offer. As I look back, I am thankful for it all.
“During what, at the time, I considered to be some of my worst experiences, I gained my fondest memories.
“Jason, this month, you are going to learn a lesson that encompasses something that has been totally lacking in your life. That is gratitude.
“I have always found it ironic that the people in this world who have the most to be thankful for are often the least thankful, and somehow the people who have virtually nothing many times live lives full of gratitude.
“While still in my youth, shortly after going out on my own to conquer the world, I met an elderly gentleman who today would be described as homeless. Back then, there were a lot of people who rode the rails, traveling throughout the country doing just a little bit of work here and there in order to get by. It was during the Depression, and some of these so-called hobos or tramps were well educated and had lives full of rich experiences.
“Josh and I traveled together for almost a year. He seemed very old at that time, but since I was still in my teens, I may have had a faulty perspective. He is one of the only people I ever met of whom I could honestly say, ‘He never had a bad day.’ Or if he did, there was certainly no outward sign of it. Traveling about as we did, we often found ourselves wet, cold, and hungry. But Josh never had anything but the best to say to everyone we met.
“Finally, when I decided to settle down in Texas and seek my fortune there, Josh and I parted company. Settling down was simply not a priority in his life. When we parted, I asked him why he was always in such good spirits. He told me that one of the great lessons his mother had left him was the legacy of the Golden List.
“He explained to me that every morning before he got up, he would lie in bed—or wherever he had been sleeping—and visualize a golden tablet on which was written ten things in his life he was especially thankful for. He told me that his mother had done that all the days of her life and that he had never missed a day since she shared the Golden List with him.
“Well, as I stand here today, I am proud to say I haven’t missed a day since Josh shared the process with me over sixty years ago. Some days, I am thankful for the most trivial things, and other days I feel a deep sense of gratitude for my life and everything surrounding me.
“Jason, today I am passing the legacy of the Golden List on to you. I know that it has survived well over one hundred years simply being passed from Josh’s mother through Josh to me, and now to you. I don’t know how Josh’s mother discovered the process, so its origins may go back much further than I know.
“In any event, I am passing it on to you, and if you will be diligent in the beginning, before long it will simply become a natural part of your life, like breathing.”
Jason and Joey arrived back at Anderson House just a few moments before our breakfast meeting was scheduled to start. Knowing that the cabin near the lake was several miles across the property over some rugged terrain, I calculated that the young men had been up long before dawn. Joey seemed to be serene but somehow very purposeful and focused in his demeanor.
Claudia served Jason and Joey first. Apparently, they were ravenous after their long hike, because by the time Claudia had finished serving the rest of us, they were ready for seconds.
I decided to wait until they had finished eating before beginning our discussion on gratitude. I learned many years ago in the courtroom that the mind can only grasp what the stomach or rear end can endure. No matter how intent someone is on learning, if they are hungry or tired of sitting, they can miss even an important message.
Finally Jason and Joey leaned back in their chairs and announced they were unable to eat another bite.
I savored my last sip of coffee and began.
“Red Stevens was a man filled with gratitude throughout his life. Most people who knew of him learned about him through media accounts and books that were based on the later portion of his business career and personal life. I don’t think people were that impressed with Red’s gratitude, as the argument could be made that, considering his wealth and fame, he had a lot to be grateful for. But I can assure you, as one of the few people who knew him in the early days, Red Stevens was grateful for everything he had even when the poorest among us would have agreed there wasn’t much.”
I gazed at everyone around the table and noticed that Jason and Joey were nodding in understanding.
Jason interjected. “Joey and I watched the gratitude video from my grandfather on my iPhone while we were at the cabin.”
I smiled and replied, “Well, then, instead of
listening to my ramblings, I would enjoy hearing what you have to say about it.”
Jason deferred to Joey with a nod.
Joey reached into his pocket, took out a piece of paper, unfolded it, and set it on the table in front of him. He glanced at it for a few moments and then spoke.
“I had always thought of gratitude as saying ‘Thank you’ when someone gave you something. I realize now that it was just one of those phrases I uttered without thought.
“After Jason shared the video that Mr. Stevens had made, I couldn’t sleep, so I walked around the lake and thought about it for a long time. I couldn’t imagine that I could write down ten things I was thankful for, so I decided to try it just to prove to you it didn’t work.”
Everyone chuckled, and I smiled at Joey, reassuring him that I was not upset.
He looked down at the paper and continued. “Well, actually, before it was done, I realized I had more than ten things and had to leave a few off.”
“Wow,” Jason exclaimed. “That happens to me all the time. My golden list changes every day, with some of the items moving up or down the list or off of it completely until they reappear at some point in the future.”
Joey took a deep breath and said, “Well, here goes. First, I am thankful for my new friend, Jason, since he seems to already have gone through some of the weird stuff I am dealing with now.”
Joey looked up as everyone chuckled. Miss Hastings nodded encouragingly for him to go on.
“Secondly, I am thankful that I got to know my great-grandmother, if only after she died. I wish I had known her before, but at least I have her legacy.”
I interjected, “Son, I knew your great-grandmother very well, and all I have left is the legacy she gave me.”
Joey nodded thoughtfully, looked at his paper, and said, “Number three, I’m thankful to Oscar for the lessons he gave me and the books he loans to me.
“Fourth, I’m thankful to Claudia for the great food.”