He sat and looked at the plague in his hands. Though it was made from wood, for Joe, it was made of diamonds, gold, and all the precious stones he could think of.
Joe had just graduated from the university, and he could not believe he was the one holding a plaque in his hands. He felt a sense of fulfillment. He looked at the sky and wished he would see his parents smiling down at him from the clouds.Joe thought to himself "I know they are proud of me".
Mr. Peter walked into the room, and Joe rushed and hugged him. "Where is Mummy?" he asked Mr. Peter, "she will soon be back". Mr. Peter looked at Joe and smiled. He was proud of Joe and what he had achieved. Mrs. Paris walked into the room, and Joe jumped on her. "You are so heavy, Joe; what have you been eating?" Mrs. Paris asked. "Mummy, stop teasing me".
Mrs. Paris told Joe "I am going to prepare your favorite meal for you". "Thank you, Mummy; you know I love my rice with stew very spicy," Joe replied to her.
Joe sat in the living room, and Mr. Peter joined him. Mr. Peter asked Joe when the LA Lakers would be playing with the Miami Heat. Joe laughed and replied "You still love basketball; that's good, Daddy".
Mrs. Paris walked into the living room and informed them that dinner was ready. They went to the dinner table, and the aroma of the meal filled the air. Joe leaked his lips and said "Mum, I have missed your delicious meals", Everyone laughed and started eating.
Joe stood and started talking, tears rolling down his eyes. "Dad and Mom, you guys have a beautiful soul. I appreciate all you guys have done for me. The last 15 years have been an amazing one for me, all thanks to you guys".Mr. Peter looked at Joe and smiled. He cleared his throat and started talking. "Joe, you are the beautiful soul here. Remember that rainy, dark night 15 years ago when we had a flat tire along the dark, lonely highway?"You walked up to us and assisted us in replacing our tire. All we have ever done for you cannot be compared to what you did for us that night".
Joe was walking on the lonely highway that fateful night. He had just lost his parents in a fire incident. Joe was just lucky that he was not home that evening.He returned that evening to the sight of his home burned to ashes with his parents in it. He went to all of his uncles' houses, and no one wanted to have him around. He decided to walk along the highway, hoping some wild beast would come and eat him up.
That was when he met with Mr. Peter and his wife. Mr. Peter had a broken wrist; his wife was heavily pregnant and couldn't replace the flat tire. They hoped someone would come to their rescue. Then came Joe; at first, they had doubts about his ability to replace the flat tire. Mr. Peter told his wife "Honey, let's seek his help; who knows, he might help us".
Joe helped Mr. Peter and his wife replace their tires. After helping them, Mrs. Paris asked Joe, "What are you doing here all alone?" Joe, with a shaky voice, answered "I am looking for where to pass the night". "How about your parents?" She asked. "They are dead; our house was burned down by fire," Joe replied.
Mrs. Paris asked her husband, "Honey, can we take him home?" Mr. Peter replied, "It's okay, let's take him home."They took him home that night.The next morning, Mr. Peter and Mrs. Paris decided to adopt Joe as their son. They called Joe to the living room so they could tell him of their decision.
"Joe, we have decided to take you and treat you as our biological son; we will register you in a school, and we will try to provide you with whatever you need. Take us as your parents from this day on." Joe was surprised; he had never seen such kind-hearted people."Thank you so much; I'm not sure I would be able to ever repay you guys for this kind gesture towards a stranger like me".
Mr. Peter and his wife took care of Joe as their son and made sure he had everything he wanted.Joe graduated from the university with an excellent result. He was able to fulfill his dream of being a medical doctor, all thanks to two beautiful souls, Mr. Peter and Mrs. Paris.