The hospital bill for his final illness came to just over $157,000. They would not hear of it, would not consider anything that even hinted that this fight against death was futile.Īfter several weeks, in spite of everything that was done for him and to him, the man died. As gently as he could, he said they should consider having a “do not resuscitate” order put on his chart.

The doctor suggested there really was no hope and perhaps less invasive procedures should be followed. They loved that old man, and they knew how hard he had worked, how much he had done for them. Though the old man lapsed into a coma, one of them was always at his bedside. He had all the tubes, the wires, the machines-the entire panoply of medical technology. They insisted on everything that could be done for their father. The diagnosis was correct and not too long after he succumbed to the ravages of his disease and was hospitalized in the intensive care unit. This was his final life’s goal-and he had met that. He had scrimped and saved, denied himself much, but was proud of being able to make this gift to his children. The doctor was in awe of the patience and discipline it would take for a working man like him to accumulate that much money. He confided in the doctor and said that, by saving and investing over the years, he had built a nest egg of almost $160,000 in CD’s and conservative mutual funds. His father’s death and the resulting poverty convinced him that one of the most important things a man could do was to leave some money to his children. Then he told the doctor of one very important achievement. He could face death because he had accomplished most of his goals. He told the doctor he suspected as much that his life had not been so good since his wife had died three years before, and that he was proud of his children and of what he had accomplished by his life of hard work.

The gift of the magi full story