Mattress Full of Money Changed The Life of a Homeless Man—EPISODE 2

• She wrapped her arms around herself, fighting the sting of tears. By the third call, she gave up. Her husband had chosen to ignore her to spend another night in the arms of another woman while she slept alone in their palace. The mattress beneath her felt too large, too empty. She curled on one side, staring at the shadows on the wall.
• The mansion was grand, but her heart was hollow. The night stretched on, and though Richard and Vanessa were bound by marriage, they were already worlds apart. The refuge dump stretched wide under the blazing afternoon sun. Piles of broken chairs, torn clothes, rusty cans, and plastic bottles filled the air with a sour stench.
• Flies buzzed in clouds rising each time a scavenger’s stick turned the trash. Among them stood David, his faded shirt soaked with sweat. His trousers torn at the knees and a sack slung across his shoulder. His hands were blackened with dirt, his face lined with exhaustion. He bent, picked a crushed bottle, and dropped it into the sack. Then he straightened, staring at the endless dump. For a moment, the noise around him faded.
• His mind drifted back, back to the man he used to be. He once wore crisp shirts and polished shoes. He remembered the cold air of the bank’s office, the way customers respected him when he signed documents with a steady hand. He was Mr. David, the young banker with promise. His future was bright, his plans sharp.
• He had told Grace, his wife, that one day they would buy land, build a house with tall windows, and fill it with children’s laughter. She believed him. but one morning changed it all. He could still see the manager’s heavy face, the pity in his eyes. David, you have been loyal, but the bank is cutting staff. Today is your last day. The words had struck like a hammer.
• He carried his belongings in a small carton, a pen, a notebook, a photo of him and Grace, smiling at the beach. He walked out into the sun and the whole city suddenly felt heavier. Grace had cried when he told her, but she wiped her tears quickly, held his hand, and whispered, “We will be fine. God will help us.” David blinked, pulled back to the dump by the cry of a hawker.
• He bent again, this time picking a rusted spoon. His back achd, but his mind refused to rest. He remembered the fire. The night was red with flames. People screamed. Water buckets clanged. Smoke swallowed the sky. Grace had been cooking when shouts filled the corridor. Fire.
• Fire. A neighbor’s stove had exploded and the inferno spread like a mad beast. He had tried to save their documents, their certificates, even the little savings they had left. But the flames were too quick, too greedy. Smoke choked his lungs. Grace pulled him by the arm, shouting through coughs, “Leave it, David. Leave it or we will die.” They escaped with nothing. Only the clothes on their bodies.
• By the time the fire service arrived, their small apartment was nothing but ashes. Years of sweat gone. Now in the dump, David closed his eyes against the memory. He could still smell the smoke, still hear the crackling wood. He clenched his fists and then forced himself to keep picking scraps. Hunger did not wait for sorrow.
• After the fire, they had moved into an uncompleted building at the edge of the city. No doors, no windows, only bare walls and dust. Grace spread a wrapper on the floor every night and they lay side by side staring at the ceiling. Sometimes rats scured past them. Sometimes rain leaked through the blocks. Yet Grace would hold his hand and whisper, “David, don’t give up.
• Tomorrow will be better.” Her faith was the only warmth left. “Hey, move there!” another scavenger shouted, snapping David out of his thoughts. He stepped aside as a cart rattled past, loaded with rusted iron. The man pushing it whistled, sweat glistening on his back. David sighed and bent again, his sack only half filled.
• He hated this life, the endless digging in trash, the looks of pity from strangers, the ache in his bones. But what choice did he have? No company called him back. No one cared for his certificates now burnt to ashes. This was survival. This was all that was left.