The
cheerful girl with bouncy golden curls was almost five. Waiting with her mother at
the checkout stand, she saw them; a circle of glistening white pearls in a pink foil
box. "Oh please, Mommy, can I have them? Oh, Mommy, please!"Quickly the mother checked the back of the little foil box and
then looked back into the pleading blue eyes of her little girls upturned
face. "A dollar ninety-five. Thats almost $2.00. If you really want them,
Ill think of some extra chores for you an in no time you can save enough money
to buy them for yourself. Your birthdays only a week away and you might
get another crisp dollar bill from Grandma."
As soon as Jenny got home, she emptied her penny bank
and counted out 17 pennies. After dinner, she did more than her share of chores and
she went to the neighbor and asked Mrs. McJames if she could pick dandelions for
ten cents. On her birthday, Grandma did give her another new dollar bill and
at last she had enough money to buy the necklace. Jenny loved her pearls. They made
her feel dressed up and grown up. She wore them everywhere -Sunday school, kindergarten,
even to bed. The only time she took them off was when she went swimming or had
a bubble bath. Mother said if they got wet, they might turn her neck green.
Jenny had a very loving daddy and every night when
she was ready for bed, he would stop whatever he was doing and come upstairs to read
her a story. One night when he finished the story, he asked Jenny, "Do you love
me?" "Oh, yes, Daddy. You know that I love you." "Then give me
your pearls." "Oh, Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have Princess - the
white horse from my collection. The one with the pink tail. Remember, Daddy? The
one you gave me. Shes my favorite." "Thats okay, Honey. Daddy
love you. Good night." And he brushed her cheek with a kiss.
About a week later, after the story time,
Jennys daddy asked again, "Do you love me?" "Daddy, you know I
love you." "Then give me your pearls." "Oh, Daddy, not my
pearls. But you can have my baby doll. The brand new one I got for my birthday. She
is so beautiful and you can have the yellow blanket that matches her sleeper."
"Thats okay. Sleep well. God bless you, little one. Daddy love you."
And as always, he brushed her cheek with a gentle kiss.
A few nights later, when her daddy came in,
Jenny was sitting on her bed with her legs crossed Indian-style. As he came close,
He noticed her chin was trembling and one silent tear rolled down her cheek.
"What is it, Jenny? Whats the matter?" Jenny didnt say
anything but lifted her little hand up to her daddy. And when she opened it, there
was her little pearl necklace. With a little quiver, she finally said, "Here,
Daddy. Its for you." With tears gathering in his own eyes, Jennys
kind daddy reached out with one hand to take the dime-store necklace, and with the
other hand he reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue velvet case with a
strand of genuine pearls and gave them to Jenny. He had had them all the time. He
was just waiting for her to give up the dime-store stuff so he could give her genuine
treasure. So like our Heavenly Father.
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