Twenty-First Century Parables

them.

The Lost Lottery Ticket

¹

Diane Wilson did not have an easy life. Most women would tell you that a husband that works seventy-five hours a week was more than enough to drive you crazy. Diane also had two small children, six and two, who took up all of her day. The usual chores around the house were enough to keep her busy, but a little cowboy romping around the living room right before daddy was supposed to be home along with the most beautiful little girl until the terrible two’s kicked in made things excruciatingly hard to handle.

It hadn’t always been like this. Originally Diane had been working as a secretary at a reputable law office in the city. Her and her husband John had been doing quite well for themselves. He was working as a building contractor whose work was requested all over the state. She was working just enough to keep her happy while pulling in enough extra money to save up for that house they both dreamed of having.

In a heartbeat that was all gone. Diane had gotten pregnant with Roger. It was a blessing and they both loved their son dearly, but then came the surprises. Roger needing Mommy to be home all the time forcing her to quit her job and go shopping a little less frequently. John being given the choice to transfer out of state at a pay-loss or losing his job, to which he promptly got another job as a low level architect with one of the smaller firms in town. Then there was loveable Janet. She was the most adorable baby at first, but now at age two with an ADD older brother Diane thought she was going to lose her mind.

There were the added financial responsibilities as well. Two kids in an apartment was too much to take day after day so instead of buying their dream house Diane and John had to buy a house they could afford now. With John changing careers and Diane selling her SUV to cover the down payment of their new home money was stretched further than they ever thought possible. Diane even had a few loans from her parents that she didn’t dare tell John about.

Diane had lost all sense of freedom. The days where time and money seemed to be everywhere were gone. Now she was lucky to have a half hour to watch TV and her $2 lottery ticket she got each week. Her numbers were always the same. All their ages and the number of years her and John had been married. It was something all the housewives in the neighborhood did, Diane took part to feel included.

Her Saturdays were all the same now. After dropping off the kids at Amanda’s the girls would all go out for coffee (another small indulgence that John wasn’t too thrilled about) and discuss the week. The lottery numbers were always announced the night before but all of them were too busy to watch for them. Instead they liked the excitement of reading them in the paper the next morning. Sure, that left them less than ten hours to claim the prize, but they never won. It was all for sheer fun.

Diane and Amanda arrived at the table a little late. Diane always wondered how Amanda could manage to get her husband to look after the kids Saturday mornings but never had the courage to ask. The two of them sat down next to Margaret and Jill and ordered the usual, a black coffee for Diane and a bagel with cream cheese and a tea for Amanda.

The conversation soon turned to its usual topics. Kids, school, activities the kids were in, their husbands, what they did all week. Usually Diane contributed but fell quiet to the excitement of the week. Jill and her husband had gone out for dinner last night to that new restaurant on the north side of town and said it was exquisite. Margaret and Amanda both had done little because they were planning on going out of town tonight until Monday morning. It sure must be nice to have a job where they let you come in a little late, Diane thought to herself knowing John’s company would never allow it.

As usual Margaret went and got the paper as she ordered a cup of coffee to go for her husband. She sat back down at the table and opened the paper up while all the girls continued their conversations. After fumbling to the lottery numbers Margaret turned slightly white, holding her breath for a second. Diane, she whispered, What are your numbers again?

Diane didn’t even look over but continued talking to Jill as she said, Two, Six, Eight, Twenty-seven and Thirty. She kept talking about little Janet and her new fascination with the toilet brush until she noticed that Margaret was still holding the paper and staring at her. What’s the matter?

Honey, you won.

Diane laughed it off. What do you mean I won?

I mean you won. Those are your numbers. Margaret finally looked up from the paper and sighed. Her voice had a certain firmness this time, Diane, you won.

Diane put her coffee down. There was no way this was happening. Let me see, she asked. Margaret handed her the paper and she looked at the numbers. Sure enough, there were her five numbers beside a big 2.8 MILLION in bold lettering. She couldn’t take it. Oh my God, I won! I won!

The other ladies at the table were just as floored as Diane, but slowly they all started to smile as the reality set in that their best friend whom they had wanted to help for so long was finally back on her feet. They all giggled and screamed and jumped up in the middle of the coffee house. People sipping their coffee turned to the commotion only to hear inaudible words among laughter and the worst dancing ever to grace the coffee house.

Diane was shaking when she finally sat back down. The ladies were all around her, hugging her shoulders, holding her hands as she made her way back onto her chair. She reached for her purse to get her ticket. The women were still talking amidst laughter when they started to notice the frantic look on Diane’s face. Her smile was gone and her shaking had been replaced with a massive attack on her purse. She was ripping items out and throwing them on the table. Margaret finally asked, What’s wrong? What is it?

The ticket.

The ladies looked at each other confused as Margaret asked again. What?

The ticket. Diane sighed, still looking in her purse, never losing focus on her goal inside. I can’t find the ticket!

Jill gasped. Amanda put her hand to her face covering the horror. Margaret still couldn’t understand what had happened. What do you mean you can’t find the ticket?

I mean I can’t find the ticker! Diane yelled. She held her purse upside down even though she knew it was empty. Where’s the ticket?!

Amanda pulled her hand down and placed it on Diane’s shoulder. Hold on. Where did you last see it?

Diane struggled to remember while putting everything back in her purse. Um, I don’t know. The kitchen? The laundry room? Maybe it was in with the laundry! Diane looked as if she were screaming, yet no sound came out until she spoke. What if I put it in the laundry?

In the midst of chaos Margaret was the first to hold her composure. Come on. We have to go find it. She grabbed Diane by the hand and dragged her to her car while the other ladies went to their separate vehicles and followed to Diane’s house.

Upon arriving, John and Roger were playing in the front yard (although Roger looked to be having more fun). Janet was amusing herself with some flowers on the other side of the front lawn from the driveway, which was probably the safest place for her as three cars came barreling in with tires screeching and brakes squealing. What are you doing? John asked with a note of anger. You could have killed-

Diane leapt out of the car and held his face in her hands. Not now honey. Where is the lottery ticket?

John jerked his head back and stared at her with a look of contempt. I don’t know where your stupid ticket is.

Again Diane grabbed her husband. Honey, she kissed him, shut up. We won.

John’s anger quickly turned to excitement. We won? He threw his arms up in the air as the kids came running over to see what the excitement was about. We won! WE WON! Wooooo! He started to go for one of the kids when Diane refused to let go of his hand.

Yes, honey. We won, but I can’t find the ticket.

John froze dead and turned back to his wife. His eyes were wide. What do you mean you can’t find the ticket?

Honey, Diane gripped his hand tighter, we have to find that ticket. She turned to get the ladies to help her, but they were long gone. Diane realized they must have run in the house while the two of them were talking.

Once the new millionaires entered their house they found the assumption was right. The ladies were already ripping the place apart. Jill was tossing couch cushions all over the place while Amanda was searching every drawer in the kitchen. Margaret was not seen, but it was impossible not to hear her slamming dresser drawers in the bedroom. The kids who had now followed mommy and daddy into the house thought this was a great idea and started making a mess too.

Diane and John quickly joined in. John ran to Janet’s room while Diane went to the children’s playroom. She took the yellow plastic toy chest in the corner and dumped it upside down hoping to see a small piece of paper fly out. Frustrated upon finding nothing she moved on to the toy on the floor and sorting through them. Still finding nothing she threw the toys back in the chest and started moving on to the toy cars.

John was having just as much trouble in Janet’s room. He overturned the bed, took the clothes out of the drawers and was now on his hands and knees going through the closet, all the while mumbling that these kids had way too many toys. He spent twenty minutes there before looking up and seeing Margaret run from the master bedroom to Roger’s bedroom.

Margaret was having no easy time either. She couldn’t believe how many toys Roger managed to keep under his bed, but the ticket was not among them. She was busy pulling things out and stuffing them back under when she heard Jill give an exhausted yell from the kitchen. Guys? was all it took to get everyone back together in the kitchen.

What is it? What? What? Margaret asked when she arrived, even though everyone had managed to beat her.

I give up. Jill looked tired and sounded frustrated. I can’t find it and I can’t stay here all day. She looked Diane in the eye. It’s already been an hour. Sorry honey, you’re going to have to face it that it’s gone. I have to get back to Steve or he’ll start to wonder where I am. She reached out to put her hand on Diane’s shoulder. I’m sorry, but-

But nothing! Diane pulled back so Jill’s hand couldn’t get to her shoulder. I’ll search the whole night if I have to. That ticket is here and there is no way I’m letting three million dollars slip through these hands. She started to turn back as Margaret spoke up in a hushed voice. Diane, I have to go too. You’re going to have to face that it’s gone. She put her head down as she walked out the door. Jill followed after her trying to give a sympathetic smile as she walked out, but Diane never saw it. She had already run back to the toy room.

Amanda wasn’t about to leave either. She knew her friend needed her and wasn’t going to let anything stop her. She quickly called her husband and told him she would be late getting home. He didn’t seem to mind. The game was on. She decided to go back to the kitchen and start going through all the piles of mail and pamphlets on the counter.

After two hours nothing had been found but frustration and anger. Everyone in the house was getting edgy. Even the kids were upset that mom and dad were being so short with them, plus their stomachs were starting to growl. Janet decided to cry until her mother came and found her.

Diane came running down the hall and grabbed her child. She quickly picked her up and took her back to the master bedroom and placed her on the bed while she continued to look for the ticket. Nothing was going to stop her. She needed to find that money. After three hours of looking without a break, she still needed to find that ticket. Nothing was going to stop her except for the noise she heard next. She paused to hear Amanda yelling, I’ve found it! I’ve found it! Diane grabbed Janet and ran back to the living room where she was quickly joined by everyone else. Amanda had a huge smile from ear to ear and small shiny ticket in her hand. She handed it to Diane while John came up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. It was in your other purse in the closet, Amanda added as they looked at the ticket.

That’s right, Diane exclaimed. I had taken the blue purse when I bought the ticket Tuesday. She stared at the ticket as John whispered in her ear, a note of shaking in his voice, Is that it? Are those the right numbers?

Diane let out a huge sigh as she scanned the numbers. That’s them, she whispered. That’s them. Honey? She turned to John. We won. We won! The cheering that had taken place before in the coffee shop resumed with one more male voice and two more children. John and Diane’s problems were over with the help of a small piece of paper. Call up the neighbors honey, she yelled. We’re all going out to celebrate!

Thanksgiving Dinner

²

Mrs. Peterson always made the best Thanksgiving turkey. No other bird could even be compared to hers. It had taken her twenty years to perfect this recipe of time, heat, herbs and spices which she then practiced another forty years since then. Now, at the age of seventy-two, Grandma Peterson knew how to make that buzzard taste better than anyone else.

Or so David thought. David Peterson was twenty-seven and one of his favorite memories was going to grandma’s house. Three hours trapped with two younger siblings was torture, especially in a station wagon long before the days of mini-vans and backseat DVD players. A ten-year-old boy can only play I Spy so many times before it gets obscenely monotonous.

Those rides had always been worth it. Grandma’s Thanksgiving dinner was always worth it. Sure there was nothing to do there, no toys, no games, no one else his age. But David was able to make it with the help of turkey and stuffing, the staples of every Thanksgiving meal. He could have lived on those two items alone, but it never stopped there. There were the glazed carrots that came straight from Grandma’s garden, along with a few other vegetables like peas and cucumber. There was the green bean casserole, the creamy mashed potatoes, the yams, the homemade rolls…The list went on and on.

After eating there was nothing else to do but relax. David cannot remember ever getting home before he was a teenager. He remembers sitting on the couch and watching TV, his next memory waking up in his bed the next morning. Dad had managed to carry him until he was twelve, then he needed to be woken up to make the walk to the car himself, where he would still manage to sleep most of the way home.

Yes, David was excited this year. He could not wait to get back to have Grandma’s Thanksgiving dinner. This year they had decided to make a celebration out of it for David. He had just been promoted at work and the family decided he should have the honor of inviting anyone he wanted to come and eat with them to celebrate his achievement. David did not take this invitation lightly. He invited everyone he could. He invited his boss, the workers he left behind, he even invited the single guy down in the mailroom that was trying to work his way through college (David figured that guy needed a good meal more than anyone). Yes, David was ready to have everyone he knew over for the best dinner of their lives.

The drive to Grandma’s took forever. Both he and Grandma Peterson had moved in the last few years. He had moved to go to work. She had moved to a smaller house when her husband died. She was still a fighter though. There would be no old age home for her despite how hard her kids tried to convince her of it. David had promised to visit at least once a month to make sure everything was okay, as had a few other children and grandchildren. But today was not about cleaning gutters or mowing the lawn. Today was Grandma’s day to work and David could not wait.

Every moment in the car seemed to be an hour. Every mile went on forever. He just could not get there fast enough, even though he had left just after noon. He wanted to make sure that everything would be ready for a grand party. David’s friends and co-workers had no idea what they were getting themselves into. There would be more than enough food for everyone and there would be more than enough to do. This party will be so great David’s boss will want to give him another promotion.

After the endless roads and horrible traffic David made it to his Grandmother’s. He still was not used to seeing her live in such a small house. But, she was okay with it. It was what she suggested instead of going to a home. As he walked up the steps to the door he wondered if everyone would be able to fit in here.

He casually walked in calling, Grandma? There was never any knocking at her house. He had always been accepted by his Grandmother and today would be no different. She came out of the kitchen in her checkered dress and apron with a huge smile on her face. David! she exclaimed as she gave him a huge hug. After letting go she looked him in the eye, Congratulations on the job. We’re all so proud of you.

Thanks Grandma. He took a deep breath. It all smells so good. Is there anything you need a hand with? Anything need to be tasted?

Mrs. Peterson giggled as she turned her back on him and walked back into the kitchen. You just stay out of my kitchen young man. If you need something to do, you should get the house ready for all your guests.

Thinking that was a pretty good idea, David decided to get to work. He started with the dining room. Having invited over twenty people (not including his family), seating was going to be a problem. Not everyone was going to be able to fit in there. However, he tried his best and managed to put the extending leaf in the table and fit twelve chairs around it. He also managed to pull in another few chairs to sit around the wall (he started to wonder where his grandmother had gotten all these chairs, but he was too focused to worry).

David then started on the living room. Moving coffee tables for people to eat on, setting up TV dinner trays and moving furniture so people would be able to see each other while they eat. He still didn’t understand why Grandma kept Grandpa’s old Lazy-Y-Boy chair. It weighed a ton and he hated moving