Week 9 Story: The Man Who Wished to be Rich

There once was a poor man called Sentaro who hated that he had very little money and had very few possessions in a very small house. He hated his meager life, however, he was never able to get a good job and didn't want to put into the effort to begin his own business. He heard of CEOs and company owner's who made millions of dollars and lived lives of luxury.

Sentaro saw those people and wished he were them. He dreamed he was them. He even prayed for it. One night, he was so unhappy he couldn't sleep and instead, he fantasized his life as a billionaire elite. He was so focused on the imagination he almost didn't hear someone knocking on his door. However, it was an insistent type of rapping that quickly forced his attention. 

Hurriedly, he opened the door and found what could have been an executive's assistant. A young man wearing a crisp, tailored suit and sunglasses despite the fact that it was nighttime. The man thrust out his hands as soon as the door opened and Sentaro found himself almost unconsciously taking hold of a Starbucks cup and a briefcase.

"Now remember," the young man said in an authoritative voice, "you've got a meeting in half an hour and a presentation after that. The files you requested are already on your desk and I have told R&D about your instructions. Your car has been waxed and is ready to go."

Sentaro, overwhelmed, glanced down at the briefcase he was holding and when he looked up the man was gone. Bewildered now, he knelt down to look inside the case. To his surprise, it was empty except for a Lamborghini Gallardo the size of a matchbox. He took it out and after playing with it for a moment, he set it aside to investigate the drink. Amazingly, it was a Grande, iced, vanilla latte with almond milk and a caramel drizzle, the exact drink he would have ordered if he had had the money. When he took a sip he found it was the exact right temperature too.

Sentaro looked around and to his astonishment, the matchbox car was gone and a full sized Lamborghini was in its place, parked on his lawn. He couldn't believe it. But, with his latte in hand, he walked to the driver side and watched as the door magically raised. Gingerly, he got inside and placed his hands on the steering wheel.

"What a car? Where could I go in a thing like this?"

It was just idle mumblings, however, the dashboard lit up and an automated voice replied, "we are headed to your place of business, estimated time of arrival in fourteen minutes," and with that said, the door lowered and the car roared to life, seemingly driving of its own accord.

Sentaro was fascinated rather than scared and enjoyed looking around the car as it took him where it wanted to go. Before long, they stopped outside of a tall metal skyscraper with many windows. The most beautiful and of course the tallest in the vicinity.

Sentaro climbed out and went inside, he expected to be escorted back out by security but instead, the secretary smiled and nodded when she saw him, "good morning, sir, shall I call your private elevator?"

Almost immediately there was a ding and the doors of the elevator opened. When Sentaro was onboard, it rose to the top floor where a lavish office awaited him. Simplistic and contemporary, yet with additions that he himself might have chosen if he had had the money.

Within a few minutes, the phone rang and the secretary reminded him of the meeting. Sentaro scrambled to his desk and browsed through the files but he wasn't couldn't figure out what they meant. He knew he had to get the meeting right or else he might have to leave so he went into a large board room and met the stares of a hundred members as confidently as he could. He managed to get through by reading off the slides and did the same when he presented to his managers later. He ignored the hundreds of emails he got and let the phone ring, pretending he was out of the office.

By the end of the day, he was exhausted but when his Lamborghini drove him to a highrise apartment and he found the penthouse was his, it was all worth it again. The next morning, he returned to work, dressed in an expensive suit and ready to do better. However, it was just as miserable.

For the first few days, he floundered through it but at the end of the week, the company was sued by a competitor. Suddenly, he had to attend press conferences and write addresses to the public. As the face of the company, everything was at stake. Not just his job, he was personally liable and if anything went wrong, people would tie his name to the disaster for years to come.

With the lawsuit and the pressures of deadlines to meet, with employees and stockholders yelling questions and demanding answers and, the thousands of emails cluttering his inbox and dozens of meeting and conferences to lead, Sendaro couldn't take it any longer. Not even Starbucks lattes could help anymore. His Lamborghini had ceased to amaze him. His inflated bank account and lavish apartment were of no use when he had no time to use them. He felt as if the stress would soon kill him.

When he spoke with other executives, CEOs, and company presidents, the felt the same way. There were too much stress and responsibility. The fame and fortune were a burden compared to what they had to deal with. The pressure was too much to take and they all wished they could just step out of the spotlight but it was too late. They were too well known and could never leave without a public spectacle made of them.

At the end of the day, Sentaro got into his Lamborghini and as the door closed, he made a request. "Take me back to my old life," he told it, "I can't handle this pressure. I don't want to be a CEO in charge of a company. I don't want the stress money brings! I don't want any responsibilities!"

"Setting course," the Lamborghini confirmed.

It roared to life and they were off but as the started down the road, the fancy dash and perfectly formed seats seemed to begin to change. They became duller and less comfortable. Sentaro realized they were becoming less expensive.

"No! No!" He cried, "I changed my mind! I don't want to be poor!"

But the car didn't turn down his street, it turned down a narrow alley and finally came to park on the curb next to a deserted lot filled with tents and tarps and boxes where the homeless had made a community.

Sentaro realized it had taken him somewhere where he would have no money, no financial responsibility. He didn't want it! "Take me back!" He yelled but the car did not move and it began to shrink.

Still, Sentaro did not get out, even when he feared he would be crushed. Just when he thought his life really might be ending, he opened his eyes and realized he was back at his small home. He had fallen asleep and hadn't ever left.

He realized instead of being jealous of the successful, he should be grateful for what he did have. From then on, he tried harder and made a better life for himself. He was never a billionaire but he was comfortable and more importantly, he was happy.

Author's Note

I wrote this story based on my reading of "The Man Who Did Not Wish to Die". Which is about a man who wants to live forever and after praying to a god, he dreams he flies to a land where he won't die, except the people there all wish they could die and after a few hundred years he couldn't take it anymore. So he flies back to his old life to die but changes his mind tries to go back and ends up falling into the ocean where a shark is about to eat him. He prays to his god and wakes up. A messenger laughs at him for wanting to live forever, then wanting to die, then changing his mind yet again. He tells him he isn't good enough to achieve eternal life but teaches him to live a good life instead. 

I took the theme and changed it to wanting to be rich and famous because I think that is something more people can relate to. Except, being a business major I can say I never want the pressures of being a CEO. It would be cool to own an expensive car though. My first choice would be BMW i8. What's yours? 

Photo Credit: picryl

The Man Who Did Not Wish to Die, Japenese Fairytales, Ozaki by Yei Theodora Ozaki