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Tess was a precocious eight-year-old when she heard her Mom and Dad talking
about her little brother, Andrew. He was very sick and they were completely out
of money. They had to downsize to an apartment because Daddy couldn't afford both Doctor bills and their house. Only a costly surgery would save Andrew. She heard Daddy say to her tearful Mother with whispered desperation, "Only a miracle can save him now." Tess went to her bedroom and pulled a glass jelly jar from its hiding place. She poured all the change out on the floor and counted it carefully. Then she slipped out the back door with her jar and walked to Rexall's Drug Store. She waited patiently for the pharmacist to give her some attention but he was busy on the phone. Tess shuffled and cleared her throat. Nothing. Finally she took a quarter from her jar and banged it on the glass counter. That did it! "And what do you want?" the pharmacist asked in an annoyed tone of voice. "Can't you see I'm on the phone talking to my brother?” "Well, I want to talk to you about my brother," Tess answered back in the same annoyed tone. "He's really, really sick... and I want to buy a miracle." "I beg your pardon?" said the pharmacist. "His name is Andrew and he has something bad growing inside his head and Daddy says only a miracle can save him now. So how much does a miracle cost?" "We don't sell miracles here, little girl. I can't help you," the pharmacist said, softening a little. But, Tess protested, "I have money to pay for it. Just tell me how much it costs." The pharmacist's brother, a well dressed man, stooped down and asked the little girl, "What kind of a miracle does your brother need?" "I don't know," Tess replied with her eyes welling up. "I just know he's really sick and Mommy says he needs an operation but my Daddy can't pay for it, so I want to use my money". "How much do you have?" asked the well-dressed man. "One dollar and eleven cents," Tess answered barely audibly. "It's all the money I have." "Well, what a coincidence," smiled the man. "A dollar and eleven cents is the exact price of a miracle for little brothers." He took her money in one hand and grasped her mitten in the other hand and said, "Take me to where you live. I want to see your brother and meet your parents. Let's see if I have the kind of miracle you need." That well dressed man was Dr. Carlton Armstrong, a surgeon, specializing in neuro-surgery. The operation was completed without charge and it wasn't long until Andrew was home again and doing well. Tess heard her mom ask: "That surgery was a real miracle. I wonder how much it would have cost?" Tess smiled. She knew exactly how much a miracle cost... one dollar and eleven cents plus the faith of a little child. (THIS IS A TRUE STORY - so I've been told) A miracle is not the suspension of natural law, but the operation of a higher law. Let's keep the ball moving! Here it goes. Throw it back to someone who means something to you! The Friendship Ball......A ball is a circle, no beginning, no end. It keeps us together like our Circle of Friends. But the treasure inside for you to see is the treasure of friendship you've granted to me. Today I pass the friendship ball to you. If you like, pass it on to someone who is a friend to you. When you are sad.....I will dry your tears. When you are scared.....I will comfort your fears. When you are worried.....I will give you hope. When you are confused.....I will help you cope. And when you are lost.....And can't see the light. I shall be your beacon.....Shining ever so bright This is my oath.....I pledge till the end. Why you may ask?.....Because you're my friend. |