What Then?
IllustrationStory★★★★AN OLD man asked a young boy, “What are you going to do
with your life?”
The young boy replied, “I’m going to college and get a
business degree.”
The old man said, “Well, what then?”
“Oh! Then I’m going up to New York and I’m going to work
on Wall Street, become a broker, and then become a
millionaire.”
“Oh! OK! And what then?”
The boy continued, “Then I’m going to buy myself a fine
house. I may try to retire early so that I can enjoy the good
life.”
“What then?”
“Well then, after that, I’m just going to party, relax, and
enjoy my grandkids.”
“Alrighty. What then?”
“I guess after all of that, I’m gonna die.”
The old man smiled wryly and looked the young boy in the
eyes. “What then?”
For all of us in life, no matter how we live our lives and no
matter what we fill them with, we will all die and we need to
have a plan in place for that time too.
Found in Tony Evans Book of Illustrations · Tony Evans Book of Illustrations > Death
The point
An old man asks a young boy repeatedly 'What then?' as the boy outlines his life plan—college, Wall Street success, wealth, retirement, grandchildren—until the final 'what then?' after death, teaching that every life must account for eternity.