The Boy Who Lost His Father at Five

The youngest of our executives began his essay with one line: "I lost my father when I was five." He grew up never knowing what a father was. His teens, by his own account, were nothing to praise — no studying, endless play, and every setback blamed on parents, environment, others.

"Looking back, I think I was desperately masking the loneliness of having no father by blaming someone." What pierced me came later: "I am here today, without question, because of the strength of many people." Where the father was absent, a mother, relatives, and neighborhood adults flowed in.

The blaming boy became a grateful man, redefining his life as "one I could never have lived alone." A life with something missing is not unfortunate — support flows into the missing place, and the day you notice, the void becomes a doorway to gratitude. He is now, at thirty-one, an executive officer carrying our future.

What do you work for?