In our company, there is a male colleague who is nearly 40 years old, unmarried, and has a monthly salary of nearly 10,000 yuan, but he lives an extremely frugal life.
He brought his own lunch every day. The dishes were simple, mostly vegetarian, such as scrambled eggs with tomatoes, shredded potatoes with green peppers, and rarely meat. He never joined his colleagues for drinks, and even when the company had dinner or someone invited him to dinner, he always declined, saying he was afraid of having to pay back.
His frugal behavior made his colleagues think he was too stingy, and he was even marginalized in the company.
However, an incident last week gave us a completely new understanding of him. He actually printed hundreds of pages of personal information in the company, which is strictly prohibited in the company. Once discovered, his bonus for that month would be deducted. When the supervisor announced that his bonus of more than 2,000 yuan would be deducted, his eyes were red and he remained silent. I really didn't understand at that time, his income was obviously enough for him to live a decent life, why did he have to be so frugal.
The mystery was not solved until two days ago. This colleague sprained his ankle accidentally, and the supervisor went to visit him at home and learned from his mother that he was carrying the burden of taking care of his nephews and nieces. A few years ago, his brother died of illness, and his sister-in-law remarried, leaving behind his nephews and nieces who were still in school. He had been silently supporting them behind the scenes.
The reason why he was so frugal was that he wanted to spend all his money on his children. Even the personal information he printed that time was for his nephew.
The supervisor was deeply touched after hearing this and told everyone about it after returning to the company. His colleagues expressed their admiration and sympathy and decided to help him as much as possible in the future.
After the boss found out, he also made three decisions: first, cancel the deduction of his bonus; second, order three meals for him every day for him to take home for his children; third, allow him to print learning materials for his children in the office.
Although these measures did not provide him with much help materially, they conveyed the company's understanding and support for him.
The supervisor informed him of his boss's decision, and although he has not yet returned to work, we can imagine how grateful he is.
This incident made me realize that we should not laugh at a person's frugality easily, because there may be responsibilities and sadness behind him that we can hardly imagine. Fortunately, there are always many kind people around us who are willing to lend a helping hand.