52stories

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Sammie and Joshua never seemed to have enough money for anything. Even their clothes, although they looked new enough, were not really theirs. A few nights ago, Sammie overheard some adults talking about a Harvest Festival at the church down the street.

“You know they do this every year,” said one elderly woman to the other. “I don’t know what you’re so up-in-arms about.”

“These things,” said the other lady through clenched teeth, “always bring out the riff-raff and freeloaders that couldn’t find the end of their nose much less how to get a job.”

Sammie didn’t stay around long. Before she heard the two old ladies talking, she had been searching through the cans behind the supermarket for some dinner for the two of them. More often than not, this was their daily meal. Scrounging through trash cans, or left over cans behind restaurants trying to find something that didn’t look or smell too bad to eat.

As usual, Sammie found something that kept their tummies from rumbling too much that night. Sammie mentioned to Joshua about the harvest festival that was happening next Saturday. “Oh, oh! Can we go? PLEASE?!?” pleaded Joshua.

“If I can find us some cleaner clothes, then yes,” she answered. “But don’t get your hopes up too much. There hasn’t been anything good in a while.”

The next night, the Thursday before the festival, Sammie left Joshua in their makeshift cardboard house. She walked the streets for hours looking for anything that would fit the two of them. She had almost given up hope when something caught her eye as she crossed an alleyway.

Sammie backed up and looked down the alley. Hanging on a clothes line were two sets of clothes in the black and orange of Thanksgiving and Halloween season. These weren’t scary clothes, but the looked nice. Sammie glanced again at the clothes and then at the ground. The clothes line was two stories up.

Sammie’s shoulders dropped. “How am I going to get those? They are perfect,” she thought. Sammie started to walk away when she noticed a dumpster close by. It was only a few feet from the bottom of the fire escape. She wondered if she could push it closer and then climb up on it.

Sammie quietly walked down the alley and opened the top of the dumpster. It looked pretty empty. She walked around to the side, glanced up again at the fire escape, took a breath and pushed. To her amazement the dumpster rolled easily across the ground. Once it stopped she realized it hadn’t made any sound at all. She looked up at the ladder hanging down, and pushed the dumpster a few more feet. She then found come cardboard boxes to stick around the wheels to keep it from rolling away as she clambered up on its top.

She crawled across the dumpster until she was underneath the ladder. Slowly, she stood up. The dumpster shifted. She almost cried out, but bit her lip to keep quiet. Again she stood. Stretching up as tall a she could her fingers brushed the bottom rung. Sammie relaxed, took a deep breath, and jumped.

Both hands snapped shut around the rung as soon as they touched it. Slowly, every so slowly, the ladder started to come down just because of the slight weight of her body. After what seemed like an eternity her toes felt the dumpster. The ladder came down and she climbed up to the next landing.

Fortunately the fire escape on this building didn’t have any windows next to the ladders and stairs that clung to the building. She crept up each step to make sure she didn’t make even the slightest noise. Eventually she made it to the second floor.

Sammie then made her way to the clothes line and gave it a testing tug. It moved, but with some squeaks. She had to pull so slowly that she never thought it would get close. Finally the shirt she wanted to wear came close and she gently pulled it down. Next came her pants, and the shirt and shorts for her brother. Once these were all taken off the line she carefully made her way back down to the dumpster, and scurried off into the darkness.

* * *

“Joshua, wake up,” Sammie whispered. “Wake up I have something to show you.”

Joshua swiped her hand away, but started to sit up. “Whadayawan?” he asked, slowly waking up. Joshua rubbed his eyes and then focused on Sammie. “What are you wearing?” he asked. “Wait, those clothes are clean. Where did you get them?”

Sammie then pulled her hands away from her back and there were a shirt and shorts in his size. “Are… are those… for me?” he gasped.

“Yes, Joshua,” answered Sammie. “And you know what this means?” Sammie grinned as she watched her brother work through possible meanings. Suddenly his eyes went wide. “WE GET TO GO TO THE FAIR!!!” he shouted. Joshua leaped up and threw his arms around his sister. “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.”

“Aww it was nothing,” she said. “Let’s get some sleep because the fair is tomorrow.”

“Oh I can’t sleep now,” said Joshua. “I’m too excited.”

“If you don’t sleep, we can’t go,” said Sammie firmly.

“Oh… but… I…”, sputtered Joshua. “Oh alright.” He lay down on the blanket and wrapped up in it. After a few “We get to go the fair” whispers Joshua did fall asleep.

* * *

“Sammie, I want to ride the ponies,” whispered Joshua to his sister

“I know, Joshua,” said his older sister Sammie, “but we don’t have enough money for the ponies.”

They had been at the fair for only a little while. They looked cute in their new clothes. Both in orange shirts. Joshua had orange shorts and tennis shoes on. Sammie’s pants where black with white and orange dots on them. They looked as if their mother had just dressed them and sent them out to play in the fair.

“But Sammie,” whined Joshua.

“Joshua, no,” said Sammie firmly. Sammie shoved her hands in her pockets and frowned. They never had enough. Not enough money. Not enough food. Nothing. She stomped her foot on the ground.

Suddenly Sammie stood still. She wriggled her hands in her pockets. Something was in her pockets. She wrapped her fingers around the crumpled wad and brought her hand out. Slowly, with disbelief, she spread out the paper. A smile crept along her lips. In her hand was a ten dollar bill. She turned around and looked back at Joshua.

“Josh, I think someone likes us,” she said.

“What?” said Joshua

“Look,” said Sammie as she held out the ten dollars. “It looks like we can ride the ponies.” She smiled at her brother.

Joshua ran up and hugged his sister. “Sammie, your the best. I love you.”

“I love you too, Josh,” she said as a tear crept to the edge of her eye. “I love you too.”