School volunteers don't get paid money, but sometimes
we receive
One of my customers that day was a parent. "I think it's awful that I have to pay to see my
own child perform," she
"The school asks for a voluntary donation to help
pay for scenery and
"Oh, I’ll pay," she grumbled. "Two adults and a child." She plunked down a ten-dollar bill. I gave her the
change and her
"How many tickets?" I asked. "I don't need tickets," he said. "I'm paying." He
pushed the coins
"But you'll need tickets to see the show tonight." He shook his head. "I’ve already seen the show." All the school children saw The Nutcracker with their
classes. The
"No," the boy insisted. "I saw it last night. My
brother and I arrived
Lots of people in that crowd had probably "just walked
in". The few
He pushed his money back to me. "I'm paying now for
last night," he
I knew this boy and his brother must have squeezed
into the back of
"If the ticket table was closed when you got there,
you couldn't pay," I
"That's what my brother said." "Nobody knows the difference," I assured him. "Don't
worry about
Thinking the matter was settled, I started to push
the coins back. He
"I know the difference." For one silent moment our hands bridged the money.
Then I spoke.
The pile of coins added up to the correct amount. "Thank you," I said. The boy smiled, turned away, and was gone. "Excuse me." I looked up, surprised to see the woman who had bought
her own
"Why don't you keep this change," she said quietly.
"The scenery is
Little did he know that he had given us both our
first gift of the
|
from Chicken Soup for the Kid’s Soul Copyright 1998 by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Patty Hansen and Irene Dunlap |
When I was superintendent of schools in Palo Alto,
California, Polly Tyner, the
Today we buried our 20-year-old
son. He was killed instantly in a motorcycle
I would have taken the time to
count the many blessings he brought to the lives of
When you put all the good attributes
on the scale and you try to balance all the
I won’t get another chance to tell
my son all I would have wanted him to hear,
If there is any purpose at all
to Jim’s death, maybe it is to make others appreciate
You may never have another chance. Do it today! |
from A 2nd Helping of Chicken Soup for the Soul Copyright 1995 by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen |
Years ago, while unearthing an ancient Egyptian tomb,
an archaeologist came upon
As a child, Mary Groda did not learn to read and
write. Experts labeled her retarded.
But more misfortune was to visit Mary Groda. After
leaving the reformatory, she
In dire financial straits, Mary went on welfare.
Finally, to make ends meet, she took in
In the spring of 1984 in Oregon, Mary Groda Lewis
- she’s married now - paraded in
|
from A 3rd Serving of Chicken Soup for the Soul Copyright 1996 by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen |