We can probably all agree that getting your first pay check is a significant moment.
Not only does it represent a reward for the effort that you’ve put in, but it’s also a box that we all have to check off on the way to transitioning from being children to being adults.
I’ll be the first to admit that when I got my very first paycheck, I wasn’t exactly the responsible person. I spent my money as if I had just agreed to a five-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers, rather than as if I had just been paid for twenty hours of work at a local dive bar.
But I’m confident that I’m not the only one who feels that way. In point of fact, I’m willing to guess that a substantial number of those of you who are reading this simply do not recall what you did with your very first paycheck.
The same cannot be true for Pavin Smith, who performed an action that was truly remarkable when the money arrived in his account; an action that neither his parents nor he will ever forget.
It’s possible that you’ll recall that Pavin was selected seventh overall in the 2017 Major League Baseball draft. When he was just 21 years old, the baseball player signed a contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks, which earned him a signing bonus of $5 million.
It wouldn’t have been too strange to see him spend the money on opulent automobiles, a couple of mansions, or perhaps even invest in some bad stock that would eventually crash and burn given his relative youth and likely lack of life experience.
Pavin, on the other hand, did not engage in any of those behaviors, at least not initially. Instead, he settled his parents’ debt by paying off their entire mortgage!
Diamondbacks outfielder Pavin Smith paying off his parents mortgage as a surprise gift. Forever my favorite Christmas video. 🎄🎁 pic.twitter.com/rmsYr20JIR
— Danny Vietti (@DannyVietti) December 25, 2021
Additionally, the first baseman sent a heartfelt letter to his parents for Christmas, explaining that he had do this as a gift for them. And their reactions are also recorded on video.
Pavin’s letter, as reported by Inside Edition, said that: “Thank you for raising me in a great home filled with love. Because of all the sacrifices you made to get me where I am, I want our family home to be yours.”
Pavin went on to say in a humble manner that the fact that he pays his parents’ mortgage does not even begin to compensate for all that they have done for him over the years and how much they have helped him. What an amazing young guy!
Even while the majority of us are unable to match Pavin’s generosity – I mean, who has that much money laying around? – we can all agree that it is undeniably the kind of act that makes one feel warms.