For 22 years Grandpa Earl and I lived quietly in an old farmhouse near Cedar Hollow. He spent his retirement raising me with honesty and hard work. Right after his funeral my cousin Marla arrived uninvited to look through our belongings for valuables. She had not visited in years but immediately insisted I should sell the property. As his grandson Nolan I wanted to protect my home while she treated it like a business. That evening I found a note in his toolbox instructing me to dig beneath the backyard willow tree to uncover a secret he hid for 22 years.
I took a shovel into the cold night to dig beneath the ancient tree. The blade soon struck a rusted metal safe. Just as I pulled it out Marla appeared and demanded to know what he had left. Inside was a small amount of cash and a letter. Grandpa accurately predicted Marla would come looking for money. The letter explained the safe was a test of my character to see if I would give in to pressure. Marla ignored his message and demanded we split the cash and sell the property.
I remembered how she always tried to buy his affection with expensive gifts he never wanted. She never understood that this farmhouse held my family history so I firmly told her I would not sell. My refusal made her furious and she shouted that the house was worthless. She snatched the small stack of cash from the open safe and stormed away. She thought she had won but she failed to notice a second envelope that fell to the ground. She drove off with pennies leaving me alone with my home.
I opened the second envelope and found a note praising my choice to stay. It told me to look behind the mirror in his bedroom. I went inside and moved the heavy glass to find a hidden wall compartment. Inside was a brass key and a larger metal box holding the true life savings of my grandfather. It was a massive sum compared to what Marla took. A final note explained he saved this money since I was born so I could build something meaningful. He tested my strength before giving me the resources to restore our beautiful farmhouse.