Simon, hailing from a humble background in a government-run public housing facility,
found himself assuming the role of mayor in a quaint West Virginia town. Growing up in a
low-income family, he and his loved ones depended on food assistance to sustain themselves each day.
As he was exposed to poverty at such a young age, he dreamed of being rich and having power,
so he studied hard, got himself scholarships in top schools,
and earned a Master's Degree in Political Science. Eventually, all Simon needed to do was run for
office so he could finally get a taste of the power he'd been longing for. He
first started out running for lower positions, until one election, he hit
it big and became the mayor of his small town. When Simon won, the first thing he ordered was
to remove the camps of homeless people on the outskirts of his city. He wanted their
city to be a clean, green, tourist-friendly town, but the homeless camps were an eyesore.
He asked his long-time executive assistant, Rob, to go to the site and have it cleared out in three
days. Rob agreed, taking a team of policemen with him to intimidate those who lived in the camps.
Simon expected Rob to be out the entire day, so he prepared a schedule to go through some
papers that the previous mayor left behind. However, he was surprised to see Rob back
in the office after just an hour. "What's wrong, Rob? Why are you
back so soon?" he asked his assistant. Rob had a worried look on his face,
not knowing how to explain something to his boss. With a nervous tone, he revealed that
he had seen Simon's daughter, Mia, alongside her five kids, in the first homeless camp he visited.
"Oh? Does she work in social services? I haven't heard from her in years. I have no idea
what she's been up to," Simon replied casually. Rob shook his head. "No, sir. Mia lives in a tent
with her five children. They are all homeless, and she told me she had been homeless for years now."
Simon's heart dropped as soon as he heard what Rob said. Ten years ago, he had kicked his daughter
out of his home after she got into a relationship with one of the construction workers building
their home. She was only 18 at the time. Simon thought it was embarrassing that his
daughter's spouse was not someone of better stature. He refused to have anything to do
with her, and he had not seen her since then. Now, he realized how cruel he'd been toward
his daughter and knew he was partly at fault for why Mia ended up on the streets. "Rob,
take me to where you found my daughter," he told his assistant.
They drove to the homeless camp where he had already spotted his daughter even before he
got out of the car. Mia was sitting on the sidewalk, feeding her children a couple of
biscuits. "She looks a lot older than she is. She's only 28, yet she looks so tired. My heart
breaks seeing this," Simon admitted to Rob. He got out of the car and slowly approached
his daughter. "Mia, what happened to you? Why didn't you ever come to me for help?" he asked.
Mia was surprised to see her father there. "Dad, I didn't think you would come. It's so nice to
see you," she said, her voice cracking as she was about to cry. She had not seen her father
in a decade, so she had no idea how to react. Simon couldn't believe what he was seeing. Mia
looked frail, as if she hadn't eaten a proper meal in a while. She was in worn-out clothes
and had long, unkempt hair. "What happened, Mia?" he asked her again, trying to figure
out how his daughter ended up on the streets. "I know you've been busy at work, and you were
mad at me the last time we saw each other, so I never thought to bother you and ask you for help,"
Mia told her dad. "My husband, James, died while working on one of the sites he was assigned to.
I'm a single mom raising our five children, so I don't have work," she revealed.
"We were kicked out of our apartment after depleting all of James' savings for our daily
expenses. I never received insurance money from him, so we ended up on the streets,
begging for food and money. I hide from social services every day because I'm afraid they'd
take my kids to foster care," Mia said, crying. Simon burst into tears as well. "I'm sorry, Mia,
please forgive me. I should have never kicked you out of the house. I was being selfish – I thought
only about myself. I can't believe you've been living this way for years while I was sleeping
in a comfortable bed every night, oblivious to the sufferings you were experiencing," he sobbed.
Mia shook her head. "It's not your fault, dad. You shouldn't blame yourself for what
happened to me. Sometimes, life throws you the most unexpected curveballs, and you just
have to deal with it. Besides, I still love you, dad. I never planted hate in my heart,
and I kept praying we'd see each other again one day. I'm glad that day finally came."
Simon continued to cry, still feeling guilty about his daughter's situation. He looked at
his grandchildren, smiling as he studied their faces one by one. "My grandchildren are beautiful,
Mia. I'm so glad to see that you are all okay, even though this is the
situation you found yourselves in," he said. Mia nodded. "This is Adam, Jeff, Marissa,
Mika, and Simon Jr. I named our eldest son after you, dad because I wanted him
to be like you one day – full of dreams and ambition to do well for himself," she said.
Simon couldn't believe Mia named one of her children after him, in spite of what he did
to her. Filled with emotion and regret, he hugged his grandchildren one by one.
That same day, Simon took Mia and her children home while he arranged the purchase of a
house they could live in. He took all of them shopping for nice clothes and nutritious food,
so they never had to experience hunger ever again. "I deeply apologize, Mia. It took me far too long
to comprehend that genuine success lies not in accomplishments or wealth accumulated but
in the family we nurture and the relationships we hold dear. I solemnly pledge to always prioritize
our family above all else. Mia, I love you dearly, and my love extends to my grandchildren
as well," Simon expressed, enveloping his daughter in a profound, lingering embrace
that reunited them after a decade apart. Continuing his tenure as the town's mayor,
Simon persisted in his decision to dismantle the homeless camps. However, he ensured that
government-sponsored housing projects were constructed to shelter the displaced individuals,
granting them a secure and protected environment that offered sustenance and access to clean water.