In this first‑person narrative, the speaker tours an old house filled with unsellable antique furniture and discovers a jade Buddha statue that the homeowner refuses to photograph or sell. The narrator asks to take a picture, promising to consult an expert. The expert, based in Manhattan, quickly offers $4,000 for the piece despite a crack in the jade and later purchases it in person for over $5,000. The homeowner, who initially swore she would never sell the heirloom (a gift from her late husband who died in the Korean War), ultimately accepts the money to cover personal expenses, including a bar mitzvah gift for her grandchildren. The narrator frames the sale as the right thing to do, balancing sentimental attachment against financial need, and ends with a call to subscribe.
Chapters
I did the walkthrough of the house, checked everything out. It was all antique furniture. It was these guys, Hummels, Daltons, Yodles. It was all stuff that's not saleable. As I'm walking out of this house, and I apologize, I'm sorry, she was moving, she needed a couple bucks. I'm like, there's nothing here. As I'm walking out, right above me, which I missed on the way in, is a jade Buddha. And this piece, at the time, it was a while ago, I was like, I know it looks good, there's some money there, I just can't be sure. I'm like, can I take a picture of it? She's like, absolutely not. I got this from my husband who passed away in the Korean War, and I'm not I'm like, I understand that, but let me just take a picture just in case, you know, I'll show it to my expert, maybe it's worth some money. I'll get back to you tonight. No, you know, what's the difference? No harm. She says, that's fine, take as many pictures as you want, but I'm not selling it. About an hour later, my expert called me up. He said, listen, offer 'em 4 grand. And I'm like, you did notice that it was cracked, you know, the jade's cracked in the back, it's not perfect. He's like, offer 'em 4 grand as is without seeing it. If I see it in person, maybe I'll pay more. I'm like, she's not selling it, she's not selling it. He's like, just call her. So I call her up and I say, listen, I know you're not selling it, but he would pay— my expert said he would pay around $4,000, possibly more. She's like, can you come over tonight? This was at 6 o'clock. By 9 o'clock that night, my expert came from Manhattan to her house, and he spent over $5,000 on the piece. And sentimentality went right out the window. She needed the money to pay for, like, she wanted a good present for her bar mitzvah for her grandkids. She said she needed a couple bucks for this, that, and the other thing. So, you know, she was happy in the end. And in that situation, you know, this little figure's nice, but the money could do more for her. So in that situation, it was You know, just the right thing to do for her. Please subscribe so you don't miss any future videos.
