The secrets to a great life...

Dave wasn’t a bad guy, really. But he did know how to get into trouble.

Fortunately for him, he was smart enough to know he needed to change course or his current path would only lead him to more trouble, prison, or worse.

Lenny was only twenty four, and just a few years older than Dave. A smart guy and a hard worker, Lenny was already the store manager, and on a different path than Dave. But Lenny was going in the right direction.

When Dave responded to the job posting for the assistant store manager vacancy, everyone thought he was just kidding himself. Even he knew it was a long shot, but he also knew he had nothing to lose. But what the hell…

Most people wouldn’t have given Lenny a second thought, “Thanks for stopping by—careful the door doesn’t smack you in the ass on the way out.”

But not Dave.

It occurred to the rising young store manager that maybe he wasn’t all that different from the guy most people thought to be a no-good street punk. Perhaps it was nothing more than a misguided youth and a few bad choices that seperated them?

Although Lenny was aware of Dave’s shady history, as well as his lack of experience and education, Lenny had a hunch that all Dave really needed was a second chance.

So, just as the interview concluded, as Dave was expecting to be escorted off the premises, Lenny asked him when he could start working. Shocked and elated, he started immediately.

For several years, Dave and Lenny worked well together. Dave was grateful for the opportunity, and was a tireless, dedicated employee. And Lenny knew he could count on Dave to hold down the fort when necessary.

But as it turned out, retail store management just wasn’t Dave’s thing. So when the opportunity came up to join a stock broker’s training program, he jumped at it.

Eventually, Lenny also moved on to bigger and better things. He went back to school, and then enjoyed a career as an engineer for one of the world’s top technology companies.

And forty seven years later, although comfortable enough to retire, Dave still enjoys being a stock broker. And he still keeps in touch with Lenny.

You see, every year, on the date that he was originally hired to be the assistant store manager for that Woolworth Five and Dime Store, Dave calls or sends a note to Lenny.

Every year for nearly half a century, Dave has taken the time to thank the person who gave him his big break - the guy who gave some “no-good street punk” a second chance.

That’s because Dave knows that if it wasn’t for Lenny, his life probably would have been over before it ever really got started.