Organic Success: A Fiction Short Story

His mother was right. James who never listened to her, as she often said, this time had to finally agree with her. Agriculture, she had said, was not the way to success these days, especially in the 1970s. Taking four years of ag studies in college was, in James’ mother’s opinion, a complete waste of time and money.

So here he was in New York City and dumped by his girlfriend, who he had spent two years courting. He had met her at the start of his junior year in college and he thought that he and Maria, the one he professed to love, would spend the rest of their lives together.

She, too, had laughed at his major of ag studies since he had never even, in the four years in college, visited a farm or seen a real cow get milked, except maybe on a TV program. As she left him at his very, very small apartment that he now shared with a former classmate, she told me that she had found a business major boyfriend and was now engaged to him.

With no great future staring him in the face, and now with no girlfriend and with only enough funds to maybe last a few months, he was what one would call depressed. He had tried interviewing for various jobs but all with no luck.

Jeff was his roommate now and had been his roommate at college. Jeff’s parents had given Jeff a large monetary graduation present, and he was sort of living the good life in New York before the funds would run out and then he, too, would be looking for a job.
If Jeff did not succeed in New York, his father had told him to come back to Texas and work in the family’s oil tool business.

After a month of moping, and being down, James came up with an idea. That night when Jeff was also home, James pitched the idea to Jeff. It required Jeff to get some backing from his family, but after hearing James’ idea, Jeff was in.

With a loan from Jeff’s father, the two of them opened a different type of grocery store — it only sold organic foods. The store contained 1800 square feet of every type of organic foods that the two of them were able to find, whether it be fruits, vegetables, meats, or whatever.

The store was an immediate success, so much so that, within one year, they had repaid Jeff’s father the money he had advanced.

Not only that, but the two of them were taking healthy salaries out of the business, and then they decided to expand and open more stores. They hired only ag majors, just as the two of them had been, made them managers of each store, and gave them a share of the store’s profits.

After three years Jeff and James had six stores in and around New York City, and they were approached by a venture capitalist who wanted to invest in their business so that they could expand from coast to coast. Within three more years they had 82 stores across the United States.

The venture capitalist then informed James and Jeff that it was time to go public. The resulting stock issue made James and Jeff very rich young men. They gave up leadership of the company by hiring a new president and chief operating officer who between the two of them had 24 years of previous experience in grocery retailing.

James and Jeff then set off on their own paths to find love and romance and to each end up with a wife who would appreciate college ag majors.

Albert Zimbler is the 93-year-old author of six humor short story books on Amazon of which MORE DATING AND MATING SECRETS OF SENIORS AND OTHER HUMOR SHORT STORIES is the latest. He also teaches senior improv.

Click here for a video of the presentation by Al Zimbler on the inspiration for his humorous stories given to the MEL (Men Enjoying Leisure) group in Chicago to which he belongs.

Click here for an interview of Al Zimbler on “The Daily Author.”