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young Japanese was spending the weekend with his elderly grandfather. The rendezvous would take place at the train station, for the grandfather lived in a village on the other side of the mountain. The boy’s parents dropped him off, hugged both of them good-bye and drove away.
As the two of them waited in line to buy their tickets, the grandfather discovered that he had left his wallet on the previous train. He didn’t have any money. It was cold and blizzardy, and he asked the ticket lady if she would loan him yen valuing $50. The grandfather promised he would pay her back later that night.
Because of the Japanese culture’s deep and abiding respect for its elders, the ticket lady believed the grandfather and paid for their tickets.
An hour later, they arrived in the village. They walked 15 minutes through the horrible weather and finally entered the cottage. Hungry, tired, and soaking wet, the grandfather went to his drawer and retrieved some money. “Let’s go,” he said. His grandson rebutted, “But Grandfather, I’m starving and we’re going back to the train station in three days. Why can’t you just pay her back then? It will cost you the price of two more round-trip tickets to go now, just to pay back two one-way passes.”
Putting on a overcoat and handing his grandson a wool blanket, the 80-year-old grandfather softly put his arm around his grandson’s shoulders and taught him the lesson of the ages. “Son, we must get there tonight before the counter closes and she goes home. This is not about money. This is about honor. I gave her my word, and we must always keep our promises!”