Big Dreams, Small Change: Part 1 of 2

Travis hungrily examined all the candy on the shelves, then opened his tiny hand to reveal only 35 cents. His stomach growled. The man at the counter huffed impatiently.
“What do you have for 35 cents?” He asked.
“Only the Jolly Ranchers, kid.” He replied.
Travis was a small boy of only seven who had recently lost his father to a car accident. His mother struggled to support herself and the two young boys, but most months they survived only on Kraft macaroni and cheese and hot dogs. Times were hard, and they had very little money, but they were rich on love and friendship.
Often times, Travis’ mother would welcome many friends into their home. She was quick to help anyone who needed a hand. Her friends were plentiful as were the late nights, bonfires, and laughs.
A woman behind Travis suddenly spoke up.
“Choose anything you like,” she said with a smile. “It’s on me.”
Travis screamed with delight and quickly grabbed two Snickers bars- one for himself and one for his younger brother sitting outside.
“Thank you!” He exclaimed at the young woman.
Then he ran outside to share the wealth with his brother.
The man behind the counter grinned at the young woman.
“You know, that was a mighty nice thing that you did there. Those boys are in here every day. They lost their father awhile back. Things haven’t been the same.”
“Really?” She replied.
She laid down a five dollar bill and ran outside.

“Hey! Wait up!” She called to the boys.
They each stopped in their tracks and turned with guilty faces.
“Oh, no, you didn’t do anything wrong,” She said. “I just wanted to ask your names.”
The younger boy started crying instantly.
“I took the yo-yo and now, we’re going to jail!” He wailed.
“Timmy! You’re not supposed to tell everyone when you steal something.” Said Travis. “Now we’ll have to go give it back and Mr. Edmonds will call the police!”
The younger boy wailed even louder.
“Hold on a second, both of you. I’m not here to take you back to Mr. Edmonds or whomever, although, this should be a lesson to you both about stealing. Never take things that don’t belong to you.”
They both stopped and quietly listen to the stranger.
“My name is Em…Miss Emily, and I’m the new second grade teacher at Thomas Edison Elementary. You both attend school there, yes?”
“Oh, great!” Said Travis. “Not only did you just get us caught stealing Timmy, but she’s my new teacher!” He exclaimed.
Timmy began crying again.
The young woman did her best to calm them down-Travis yelling and Timmy crying caused quite a scene on the street.
After a lot of gentle coaxing, Emily was able to calm them down and walk them back home. The two boys ran inside to tell their mother about Miss Emily. She stepped outside to meet her and welcomed her inside.
They spent hours talking while the boys played.
Before she took her leave, Emily explained that she desperately needed an assistant. Not only did she take the teaching position, but she was working on two book projects as well. Miss Emily was a writer.