Sometimes life takes such unexpected turns that you end up in a place you least expect. That happened to Don Alexey, a simple man with sincere eyes and a back bent by age, who dreamed of seeing his children happy and fulfilled. But he never thought that, after giving everything to his children, he would be alone, rummaging through trash, looking for answers in a place he had only forgotten.

Don Alexey’s story could be that of any Mexican father, one who works hard to support his family, endures fatigue and pain, and always puts his children first. His wife, Katya, passed away many years ago, but he never stopped thinking about her, especially as he watched his sons, Arseniy and Vitalik, grow up and make their own lives. One ordinary afternoon, as the golden light of dusk streamed through the window, Vitalik ran into the house.

“Hello, Dad, we have a present for you!” the boy shouted with the joy that only children have when they believe they are doing the right thing. Arseniy, his brother, followed closely behind, smiling shyly. Don Alexey, surprised, looked at them affectionately.

“What present? You didn’t have to spend money on me!” he said, although deep down he felt a little proud. The children handed him an envelope.

It was a ticket to a sanatorium specializing in musculoskeletal diseases. “A friend sold it to me for half price,” Vitalik explained. “My dad bought it and now he can’t walk anymore.

This is just what I needed for my back!”

For a moment, Don Alexey felt his heart sink. He thought that, after all, he had done the right thing. He had raised generous children, just as his wife had always wanted.

He hugged them tightly, feeling both proud and nostalgic. Katya, he thought, I wish you were here to see this.

But the children’s generosity was not accidental.

For months, they had been urging him to sell his three-bedroom apartment in the city center.

The plan was simple: divide the money between the three of them, buy Don Alexey a small apartment in the suburbs, and that way each son could have his own home. “I don’t need a villa anymore,” he thought. “As long as I have a roof over my head and a bed to sleep in, I’m fine.”

Besides, the youngest was getting married, and the eldest was about to become a father.

A week later, the sons said goodbye to their father at the station. For the first time in many years, Don Alexey was going on vacation, to rest and treat his back pain. For a week, he enjoyed the fresh air, the medical treatments, and the company of other old people who, like him, told stories of better times.

The story doesn’t end here –
it continues on the next page.
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