The sun was setting and the streets were empty, when a slip of a girl crept out from behind a dumpster and walked to the end of the street to gaze at the figure in the store window. The mannequin wore an elegant dress but it was the hat that caught her attention, a blue straw one with a large floppy brim, forget-me-not flowers and silk ribbons around the crown - a wonder to behold. If only, if only, she could buy that hat. It would transform her sad world and make it sing again. Her promise that night was to return and ask its price. Would she have the courage?
"Hello Miss, may I help you?" the elderly lady in the store asked. The girl replied shakily, "I'm not sure, I've never been here before." “What is it you wished to look at...you were eyeing the hat in the window. Would you like to try it on?" The girl replied “Oh yes, please, but I'd like to know the price."
“It is Five Dollars. We are a Thrift Store and all our proceeds go to helping the poor”, the lady replied. The girl felt her pocket that contained nothing but small change but she bravely moved to try on the beautiful hat. Oh my, she breathed as she looked in the mirror. "I'd love to take it but I don't know if I have that much money”. The lady said "let's see how much you do have, and maybe we can settle on a different price." The coins were counted out to Three dollars and 27 cents.
The lady winked to the cashier and said to the girl, "My dear, you have enough to buy this hat. Would you like me to put it into a box?" She couldn’t believe her ears, but said “Oh yes, and many thanks to you for your generosity in changing the price”.
The slip of a girl carried the box to the hovel where they lived and sat down beside the bed. "My darling Mama, we both know you have but days to live, but I have the most beautiful hat for you to wear for all the days you have left. After you have gone, I will wear it in remembrance of you.”
No comments:
Post a Comment