whoever gets the son ...

The story is told about a wealthy man who, years ago, shared a passion for collecting art with his son. They had priceless works by Picasso, Van Gogh, and many others adorning the walls of their family estate. But there was conflict in that region, and war soon engulfed the nation, and the son left to go serve his country. Several months later his father received a telegram. His son had been killed in battle. Lonely and distraught, the old man faced the upcoming Christmas with great sadness.

On Christmas Eve, a knock on the door awakened the depressed old man. As he opened the door he was greeted by a soldier who was holding a package. The soldier said, “I was friends with your son. I have something to give you.” The soldier was an artist and the package was a portrait of the man’s son. As he opened the package, the old man was overcome with emotion, and immediately he hung the portrait over his fireplace, pushing aside millions of dollars worth of art.

The following spring, the old man died. The art world waited with anticipation for the day when his paintings would be auctioned off. According to the will of the old man, the art would be auctioned off on Christmas Eve.

Christmas Eve finally arrived and art collectors from around the world gathered to bid on some of the world’s most spectacular paintings. The auction began with the painting of the man’s son. The auctioneer asked for an opening bid, but the room was silent. “Who will open the bidding with $10?” No one spoke up. Finally someone yelled, “Who cares about that painting? It’s just a picture of his son. Let’s move on to the important stuff!” The auctioneer responded, “No, we have to sell
this one first. Now, who wants the son?” Finally a neighbor of the old man offered $10 for it. The auctioneer said, “Going once, going twice . . . sold.” And the gavel fell.

The auctioneer looked around at the room filled with people and announced that the auction was over. Everyone was stunned. Someone spoke up and said, “What do you mean, it’s over? We didn’t come here for a painting of someone’s son. There’s millions of dollars worth of art here!” The auctioneer replied, “According to the father’s will, whoever gets the son gets it all.”

Whoever gets the Son ... gets it all.

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