The funeral of Don Artemio, owner of the largest furniture company in the province, had just concluded. Inside his mansion, his two children were having dinner: Stella (the socialite eldest daughter) and Ricky (the youngest son who loves sports cars).
Nanay Ising, the 65-year-old housemaid who had served Don Artemio for forty years, was serving the food. She had cared for the Don when he suffered a stroke and was bedridden for five years.
Tired from attending to the wake, Nanay Ising was about to sit down at the end of the long dining table to eat a little rice.
“Hep!” shouted Stella, while slicing her steak. “Where are you sitting, Yaya (nanny/maid)?”
“I-I was just going to eat, Stella. I’m hungry,” the old woman answered softly.
“Excuse me,” Ricky rolled his eyes. “This is a family dinner. This is for the heirs. Go eat in the dirty kitchen. You know your place, right? You’re just a maid.”
“That’s right,” Stella added. “We might catch the smell of your uniform. Go eat outside with the driver.”
Nanay Ising looked down. She held back her tears. She was the one who changed Stella’s diapers when she was a baby. She was the one who taught Ricky how to ride a bike. But now that the Don was gone, they treated her like a rag.
Nanay Ising quietly took her plate and ate next to the sink in the kitchen, hearing the siblings’ laughter in the dining room as they discussed what they would buy with their inheritance.
A moment later, Attorney Galvez, the family lawyer, arrived.
“Good evening,” greeted the lawyer. “I’m here to read the Last Will and Testament of Don Artemio. He wished for it to be read immediately after the burial.”
Stella and Ricky brightened up.
“Finally!” said Stella. “Attorney, please sit down. Yaya! Get the Attorney some water!”
Nanay Ising stood up to get the water, but the lawyer stopped her.
“No need, Nanay Ising. Please, sit here,” Attorney Galvez invited, pointing to a chair at the dining table—the chair that had been denied to her moments before.
“Attorney, why is she sitting there?” Ricky complained. “This is a private matter.”
“Her presence is required here. She is included in the will,” the lawyer seriously replied.
The siblings fell silent, looking at each other. They probably thought their father was just leaving the nanny a small bonus.
The Attorney opened the brown envelope.
“To my daughter, Stella…” the lawyer read.
Stella smiled.
“…I leave you my collection of antique paintings and jewelry worth 5 Million Pesos.”
“5 Million? Not bad,” Stella whispered.
“To my son, Ricky…”
Ricky sat up straight.
“…I leave you my fleet of luxury cars and my golf membership shares worth 5 Million Pesos.”
“Yes! Ferrari!” Ricky shouted.
“And now…” the lawyer took a deep breath. “Regarding the Main Estate—the Mansion, the 50 Hectares of Hacienda, the Building in Makati, and the Bank Account containing 100 Million Pesos…”
The siblings’ eyes widened. This was it. This was the jackpot.
“I give ALL of this…”
Stella and Ricky’s world paused.
“…to the only person who did not abandon me when I smelled bad, when I couldn’t stand, and when I had to be spoon-fed while my children were vacationing in Europe.”
The Attorney looked at Nanay Ising.
“I give everything to… NARCISA ‘ISING’ REYES.”
CLANG!
Stella’s fork clattered. Ricky almost fell off his seat.
“WHAT?!” they both shouted simultaneously.
“Is this a joke, Attorney?!” Ricky yelled. “To the maid?! Was Daddy crazy?!”
“Your Daddy was of sound mind,” the Attorney replied. “He stated here: ‘Family is not measured by blood, but by care. My children were only waiting for me to die to get my wealth. Ising cared for me so I could continue to live.’”
Nanay Ising cried. “A-Attorney… I cannot accept that. It’s too much. I only wanted to serve Sir.”
“It is yours now, Nanay,” the lawyer smiled. “You are the new owner of this mansion.”
The lawyer turned to Stella and Ricky, who were pale and trembling with anger and shame.
“And according to a clause in the testament,” the Attorney added. “Nanay Ising has the right to decide who can live in this mansion starting tomorrow.”
The siblings looked at Nanay Ising—the woman they had just banished from the table.
Now, Nanay Ising was sitting at the head of the table.
Stella approached Nanay Ising, her voice suddenly sweet. “Y-Yaya Ising… you know that was just a joke earlier, right? We love you…”
Nanay Ising looked at them. There was no anger in the old woman’s eyes, but the dignity she had long hidden was there.
“I will not ask you to leave,” Nanay Ising said calmly.
The siblings breathed a sigh of relief.
“But,” Nanay Ising continued. “Starting tomorrow, you will be the ones cleaning the house, cooking, and doing the laundry. I will teach you how to be human. If you refuse, the gate is wide open. You may leave now.”
Stella and Ricky had no choice but to bow their heads. The table they had denied her was now owned by the person they treated as a servant.
They learned the hardest way that true wealth is not in the family name, but in the purity of the heart.