What he valued most

A young man learns what’s most important in life from the guy next door.
It had been some time since Avinash had seen the old man. College, girls,
career, and life itself got in the way. In fact, Avinash moved clear across
the country in pursuit of his dreams. There, in the rush of his busy
life, Avinash had little time to think about the past and often no time to
spend with his wife and son. He was working on his future, and nothing
could stop him.

Over the phone, his mother told him, “Mr. Balwaker died last night. The
funeral is Wednesday.” Memories flashed through his mind like an old
newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days.

“Avinash, did you hear me?”
“Oh, sorry, Mom. Yes, I heard you. It’s been so long since I thought of
him. I’m sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago,” Avinash said.

“Well, he didn’t forget you. Every time I saw him he’d ask how you were
doing. He’d reminisce about the many days you spent over ‘his side of
the fence’ as he put it,” Mom told him.

“I loved that old house he lived in,” Avinash said.

“You know, Avinash, after your father died, Mr. Balwaker stepped in to make
sure you had a man’s influence in your life,” she said.

“He’s the one who taught me carpentry,” he said. “I wouldn’t be in this
business if it weren’t for him. He spent a lot of time teaching me
things he thought were important…Mom, I’ll be there for the funeral,”
Avinash said.

As busy as he was, he kept his word. Avinash caught the next flight to his
hometown. Mr. Balwaker’s funeral was small and uneventful. He had no
children of his own, and most of his relatives had passed away.

The night before he had to return home, Avinash and his Mom stopped by to
see the old house next door one more time.

Standing in the doorway, Avinash paused for a moment. It was like crossing
over into another dimension, a leap through space and time. The house
was exactly as he remembered. Every step held memories. Every picture,
every piece of furniture….Avinash stopped suddenly.

“What’s wrong, Avinash?” his Mom asked.

“The box is gone,” he said.

“What box? ” Mom asked.

“There was a small gold box that he kept locked on top of his desk. I
must have asked him a thousand times what was inside. All he’d ever tell
me was ‘the thing I value most,’” Avinash said.

It was gone. Everything about the house was exactly how Avinash remembered
it, except for the box. He figured someone from the Balwaker family had
taken it.

“Now I’ll never know what was so valuable to him,” Avinash said. “I better
get some sleep. I have an early flight home, Mom.”

It had been about two weeks since Mr. Balwaker died. Returning home from
work one day Avinash discovered a note in his mailbox. “Signature required
on a package. No one at home. Please stop by the main post office within
the next three days,” the note read.

Early the next day Avinash retrieved the package. The small box was old and
looked like it had been mailed a hundred years ago. The handwriting was
difficult to read, but the return address caught his attention.

“Mr. Harish Balwaker” it read.

Avinash took the box out to his car and ripped open the package. There
inside was the gold box and an envelope. Avinash’s hands shook as he read
the note inside.

“Upon my death, please forward this box and its contents to Avinash
Badarinad. It’s the thing I valued most in my life.” A small key was taped
to the letter. His heart racing, as tears filling his eyes, Avinash
carefully unlocked the box. There inside he found a beautiful gold
pocket watch. Running his fingers slowly over the finely etched casing,
he unlatched the cover.

Inside he found these words engraved: “Avinash, Thanks for your time!
Harish Balwaker.”

“The thing he valued most…was…my time.”

Avinash held the watch for a few minutes, then called his office and
cleared his appointments for the next two days. “Why?” Janaki, his
assistant asked.

“I need some time to spend with my son,” he said.

“Oh, by the way, Janaki…thanks for your time!”