Once upon a time there lived a rich man who wanted to spend his money giving good things to the poor. One day he found a group of raggedy children playing in the street and said to them, “Come, boys and girls. Each of you must tell me something you would like, and I will buy it for you. Anything at all. What do your little hearts desire?”
The children who had gathered around hesitated, looking slightly confused, but finally one dirty-faced little boy spoke up. “I don’t want anything, Sir, but thank you anyway.” The other children nodded at one another and seemed to agree that none of them wanted anything either.
The rich man chuckled with surprise, “You don’t mean that. Perhaps your mama has taught you it is not polite to ask for things. Well, well, this is different. I want to buy something for you — for each of you. There are lots of nice things in the shops. Food, clothing, toys. You needn’t worry. I will explain to your mamas.”
This seemed to help a bit. The dirty-faced boy spoke up again, “Well, I suppose it would be nice to have some trash. If you please, Sir, could you buy me some trash?” Again the other children looked as though they agreed. Heads nodded, eyes brightened, and a few voices were heard echoing, “Oh yes, I want trash, too.”
The bewildered rich man paused before replying. “No, children, you don’t want trash. Trash is something thrown out because it has been ruined. I want to give you something nice and new. Come, come. There must be something — how about something to eat?”
The children looked disappointed, but then a little girl stepped forward to try again. “I know something, Sir; may I have some pig slop to eat?”
The rich man’s eyebrows shot up in astonishment. Could these children really be so poverty stricken as to not know what an apple is? “My dear,” smiled the rich man, “pig slop is not nice food. I cannot . . . or at least I will not . . . no dear, pick something else. What about an apple or some warm bread with butter? Have you ever had ice cream? It is simply delicious! Why don’t I buy you some ice cream?”
The little girl tried to keep up a polite face, but she was clearly uninterested in this offer. “That’s alright, Sir, I don’t want any ice cream. Thank you.”
Before the rich man could argue, another urchin piped up, “How about a rotten, slimy apple? Can I get one of those?” This was followed by several similarly disturbing requests:
“Yes, I want a slimy worm.”
“How ’bout some garbage?”
“Is junk okay?”
“I want filth!”
“Could I have some sludge?”
The rich man looked around at the boys and girls in disbelief. He was dumbstruck! These poor little wretches didn’t seem to understand anything about good food. Scratching his head and slowly recovering from his shock, he decided there was only one thing to do at this point. He smilingly leaned forward, rubbing his hands together, and said in an excited whisper, “I know! I will bring you a surprise — something you will love. Wait here. I’ll be right back with a treat.”
The rich man found a lovely candy shop and purchased all the tasty treats he could find. There were colorful lollipops, caramel filled chocolates, gumdrops, mints, candy necklaces, and saltwater taffies, to name only a few. He hurried back to the street corner where the ragamuffins waited for him with anticipation.
He pulled the goodies out of the bag and placed them on the outstretched palms. “This is for you, and one for you, and you — I bought plenty. Please eat as much as you like. And if the bag runs out, we’ll buy some more.”
Just as the rich man was beginning to think he had achieved success, the expressions on the children’s faces checked his delight. They looked at the candy in their dirty hands with great aversion. Several little palms recoiled before he could give them anything. They looked at each other to see if anyone was being brave enough to take a bite. A few of the boys cautiously sniffed the candy only to find their suspicions confirmed. They put the candy back in the bag, still doing their best to be polite to this man who had interrupted their play with so many unwanted gifts. One by one the children thanked him, returned the candy, and ran off to play, until there was only the one dirty-faced boy left looking at the big yellow gumdrop in his hand with great skepticism. The rich man, who was feeling thoroughly mystified and saddened by now, had this last hope before him. “Will you take a bite to taste it? It’s sweet and lemony. I’d be so happy if you would try it. . . .”
The little boy was feeling sorry for the man. He took a deep breath to firm up his resolution and then bravely popped the whole gumdrop into his mouth. He began to chew with a face full of curiosity, but a moment later the curiosity was replaced with surprise, pucker, and the faintest beginnings of delight. He was giving his full concentration to the new and unexpected sensation taking place inside his mouth. When he finished swallowing his gumdrop, the boy looked at the rich man, who was beaming now, and said, “Hey, Mister, I think I kinda liked that.” Then licking his lips, “Say . . . uh . . . can I try another one?”
— The End —
Collect for the Fourth Sunday After Pentecost:
Let Thy merciful ears, O Lord, be opened to the prayers of Thy suppliant people; and that Thou mayst grant them their petitions, make them to ask for such things as shall please Thee.
Amen!
