Nigerian medical doctor and digital creator, Toluwani Binutu, delayed buying his own car for years so he and his siblings could first gift their father a brand new Mercedes Benz replacing the family's unreliable 10 year old red Mercedes that often broke down requiring pushes even on the way to church.
The heartfelt story shared on his social media has gone viral with lessons on gratitude honor and parental sacrifice.
'I refused to buy my own car until we bought one for my dad,' Binutu wrote.
'Growing up we didn’t have much. But we had parents who sacrificed everything for us. After medical school when I was preparing to relocate to the UK I lived at home for years. I ate their food. Saved my money. Planned my next move. They never pressured me. Never complained. Never made me feel like I was 'too old' to still be under their roof. They just supported.
'Meanwhile my dad had been driving the same red Mercedes for about 10 years. Toward the end it smoked badly when he started it. Sometimes it broke down on the way to church. They would have to get down and push it. One day my mum mentioned it casually on a phone call. It stayed with me.
'At the time I could have bought a car for myself. But it didn’t feel right. So I spoke to my siblings. We decided to pool our resources and surprise him for his birthday.
'He came home from work. Saw the car. Walked around it slowly. 'Is this for me?' he kept asking. Later my mum told me he got very emotional. He said no one had ever given him such a gift before.
Growing up my mum used to pray over us - 'When you call on one a thousand will answer.' I didn’t want them to have to call before we answered.
'Success is not the car. Success is being able to honour the people who carried you when you couldn’t carry yourself.'
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