~ PEARLS ~
The cheerful little girl with bouncy golden curls was almost five. Waiting with her mother at the checkout stand, she saw them, a circle of glistening white pearls in an pink foil box. "Oh Mommy please, Mommy. Can I have them? Please, Mommy, please?". Quickly the mother checked the back of the little foil box & then looked back in to the pleading blue eyes of her little girl's upturned face." A dollar ninety-five. That's almost $2.00. If you really want them, I'll think of some extra chores for you to do & in no time you can save enough money to buy them for yourself. Your birthdays only a week away & you might get another crisp dollar bill from Grandma." As soon as Jenny got home she emptied her penny bank & counted out 17 pennies. After dinner, she did more than her share of chores, went to the neighbor & asked if she could pick dandelions for ten cents. On her birthday, Grandma did give her another new dollar bill & at last she had enough money to buy the necklace. Jenny loved her pearls. They made her feel dressed up & grown up. She wore them everywhere, Sunday school, kindergarten, even to bed. The only time she took them off was when she went swimming or had a bubble bath. Mother said if they got wet they might turn her neck green. Jenny had a very loving daddy. Every night when she was ready for bed he'd stop what he was doing & come upstairs to read her a story. One night as he finished the story, he asked Jenny, "Do you love me?" "Oh yes, Daddy. I love you.""Then give me your pearls." "Oh Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have my Princess, the white horse from my collection, the one with the pink tail. Remember Daddy? The one you gave me. She's my favorite." "That's okay, Honey, Daddy loves you. Good Night." He brushed her cheek with a kiss. About a week later, after the story time, Jenny's daddy asked again, "Do you love me?" "Daddy, you know I love you." "Then give me your pearls." "Oh Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have my baby doll. The brand new one I got for my birthday. She's beautiful & you can have the yellow blanket that matches her sleeper." "That's okay. Sleep well. God bless you, little one. Daddy loves you." As always, he brushed her cheek with a gentle kiss. A few nights later when her daddy came in, Jenny was sitting on her bed with her legs crossed in Indian style. As he came close, he noticed her chin was trembling & one silent tear rolled down her cheek."What is it, Jenny? What's the matter?" Jenny didn't say anything but lifted her little hand up to her daddy. When she opened it there was her little pearl necklace. With a little quiver, she finally said, "Here, Daddy, this' for you." With tears gathering in his own eyes, Jenny's daddy reached out with one hand to take the dime store necklace & with the other hand he reached into his pocket & pulled out a blue velvet case with a strand of genuine pearls & gave them to Jenny. He had them all the time. He was just waiting for her to give up the dime store stuff so he could give her the genuine treasure.
Author Unknown
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