"A Valuable Life Lesson" ...


Sometimes, life throws us a helping hand when we least expect it.

A few weeks ago, I was rushing around trying to do some last minute Easter
shopping. I was stressed out and not thinking very fondly of the weather
right then.

It was dark, cold, and wet in the parking lot as I was loading my car. I
noticed that I was missing a receipt that I might need later. So mumbling
under my breath, I retraced my steps to the mall entrance.

As I was searching the wet pavement for the lost receipt, I heard a quiet
sobbing.

The crying was coming from a poorly dressed boy of about 12 years old.

He was short and thin. He had no coat. He was just wearing a ragged
flannel
shirt to protect him from the cold night's chill.

Oddly enough, he was holding a hundred dollar bill in his hand. Thinking
that he had gotten lost from his parents, I asked him what was wrong.

He told me his sad story. He said that he came from a large family. He had
three brothers and four sisters. His father had died when he was nine
years
old. His mother was poorly educated and worked two full time jobs. She
made
very little to support her large family. Nevertheless, she had managed to
skimp and save two hundred dollars to buy her children some Easter
presents
(since she didn't manage to get them anything for Christmas).

The young boy had been dropped off by his mother, on the way to her second
job. He was to use the money to buy presents for all his siblings and save
just enough to take the bus home. He had not even entered  the mall, when
an
older boy grabbed one of the hundred dollar bills and disappeared into the
night.

"Why didn't you scream for help?" I asked.

The boy said, "I did."

"And nobody came to help you?" I queried.

The boy stared at the sidewalk and sadly shook his head.

"How loud did you scream?" I inquired.

The soft-spoken boy looked up and meekly whispered, "Help me!"

It was then that I realized that absolutely no one could her that poor boy
cry for help.

So I grabbed his other hundred and made a run to my car.

Signed,

Kenneth Lay
CEO, ENRON Corporation