Amazing True Story
This is a true story that had happened in 1892 at Stanford University. It's moral is still relevant today.
A young, 18 year old student was struggling to pay his fees. He was
an orphan, and not knowing where to turn for money, he came up with
a bright idea. A friend and he decided to host a musical concert on
campus to raise money for their education.
They reached out to the great pianist Ignacy J. Paderewski. His
manager demanded a guaranteed fee of $2,000 for the piano recital. A
deal was struck. And the boys began to work to make the concert a
success.
The big day arrived. Paderewski performed at Stanford. But
unfortunately, they had not managed to sell enough tickets. The
total collection was only $1,600. Disappointed, they went to
Paderewski and explained their plight. They gave him the entire
$1,600, plus a cheque for the balance of $400. They promised to
honour the cheque soonest possible.
"No" said Paderewski. "This is not acceptable" He tore up the
cheque, returned the $1,600 and told the boys "Here's the $1,600.
Please deduct whatever expenses you have incurred. Keep the money
you need for your fees. And just give me whatever is left" The boys
were surprised, and thanked him profusely.
It was a small act of kindness. But it clearly marked out Paderewski
as a great human being. Why should he help two people he did not
even know? We all come across situations like these in our lives.
And most of us only think "If I help them, what would happen to me?"
The truly great people think, "If I don't help them, what will
happen to them?" They don't do it expecting something in return.
They do it because they feel it's the right thing to do.
Paderewski later went on to become the Prime Minister of Poland. He
was a great leader, but unfortunately when the World War began,
Poland was ravaged. There were over 1.5 million people starving in
his country, and no money to feed them.
Paderewski did not know where to turn for help. He reached out to
the US Food and Relief Administration for help.
The head was a man called Herbert Hoover - who later went on to
become the US President. Hoover agreed to help and quickly shipped
tons of food grains to fee the starving Polish people. A calamity
was averted.
Paderewski was relieved. He decided to go across to meet Hoover and
personally thank him. When Paderewski began to thank Hoover for his
noble gesture, Hoover quickly interjected and said, "You shouldn't
be thanking me, Mr. Prime Minister. You may not remember this, but
several years ago, you helped two young students go through college
in the US. I was one of them."
The world is a wonderful place. What goes around usually comes around.
NARESH VAKHARIA
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