I found a universal key that opens any lock.

It’s not a joke, and it’s not a trick. I promise you, it’s real. <br><br>I was a locksmith who worked for a large company based in New York City. My name is Jim, and I’ve been in the business for about 15 years. I’ve been all around the city, and have seen it all. From the tallest skyscrapers to the oldest brownstones. <br><br><br><br>Back in the day, I was an apprentice for an old man in the city. He was a good guy, taught me a lot about locks, and gave me good advice about life. Before he died, he gave me a large wooden box with some miscellaneous tools, locks, and various knick-knacks in it. It was a touching gesture, and I thought nothing more of it. That was until one day I was in a pinch. <br><br><br><br>I went on a job to a high rise tower in Manhattan, and one of the resident’s had locked herself out of her house. It was a simple job, but the resident was being very unreasonable. She offered to pay me triple my normal rate if I could get into her house in under 15 minutes. I had 13 minutes, and was starting to sweat. I searched every nook and cranny of my truck for a master key that would work on her lock, but none of them would even fit into it. By the time 13 minutes was up, I was in a full panic. <br><br><br><br>I stood there, frozen like a statue for almost a minute. It seemed like an eternity. I thought of all the times that my mentor, Ed, would tell me stories of being in tough situations. I remembered what he always used to say. “A good locksmith always keeps a trick up his sleeve.” I thought about it for a second, and then I looked at the wooden box in the back of my truck. It was the same box that Ed had given me when I left his shop. It was an old box, probably older than I was. I decided to check it, and low and behold, there was a shiny key buried amongst the junk. I picked it up, and was about to throw it back when something told me to give it a try. <br><br><br><br>I walked back up to the door, key in hand, and unlocked it with no problem. She paid me, I took the money, and left. I thought nothing more of it, until the next day when I received a call to open a safe in a seedier part of town. It was a shifty job, but the guy offered me a lot of money, and I wasn’t in any position to turn it down. I went, and when I arrived, the owner was very receptive to me. He let me do my thing, but after about 10 minutes, I was nowhere closer to opening it. <br><br><br><br>There was something strange about the lock, as if it was made in a different time. It was old, and had a funny looking key hole. None of my master keys fit into it, and I didn’t have many other options. I thought about Ed again, and the funny key that I had found. I hated carrying it around, because it was bulky and ruined the organization in my cabinet. <br><br>It was a long shot, but I decided to give it a try. I walked up to the safe, and shoved the key into the key hole. To my surprise, it fit, and the safe clicked open. The owner was so happy with me that he called his friends, and before long, my phone was ringing nonstop. <br><br><br><br>It seemed as though the key would open any lock. I used it to unlock doors, safes, and even padlocked gates. It was truly a universal key. <br><br>Over time, I began unlocking more than locks. As the years passed, I found myself using the key less and less for locks and more and more for life. It has opened me up to a world of possibilities. It taught me that even when you’re stuck, there’s always a way out.