Pencils, 25¢
Early last week, I was picking my son up from school. I grabbed his admittedly way-too-large backpack as he frantically searched every one of his pockets. “What are you doing?” I asked him. He continued to pull the insides out of one after another - from each of his pants pockets to his coat pockets. “It was just here. I just had it!” he muttered. Finally, he turned to me and said “Mom, why do you not have any money?” Huh? Where did that come from? “Why are you asking?” I replied. He said, “Someone gave me some money for the “mash-a-sheen” and I lost it… I don’t know why you don’t have any money.” Confused, I asked him to walk me through it one more time. He continued to talk about something called a “mash-a-sheen” and my apparent lack of capital.
Finally, he grabbed my hand and led me quickly down one hall and then another before we came to
rest in front of an old, blue “mash-a-sheen” that said “Pencils, 25 cents.” Suddenly, all made sense. “You want a pencil?” I asked him. “Yes,” he replied, “you put money in, and it gives you a pencil. I’ve seen it!” I fished a quarter out of my purse (he did not hide his surprise that mom did in fact have some money), and he gleefully put it into the “mash-a-sheen”. It was one of those where you had to shove the quarter in and then pull the lever back out again, therefore requiring the strength of both mom and son. As we pulled the lever back out, we both watched a rainbow-colored pencil fall out into the tray at its base. My son grabbed the pencil, hugged it, and declared this one of the best moments of his day.
The first reading today is beautiful in its entirety, and there is so much one could say. But as I prayed with it, one line stuck out to me among all the others. In between the descriptions of how peace would unfold between pairs of seemingly opposing creatures on earth, it mentioned that there would be “a little child to guide them.” At this time of year, as I am sure it is true for a lot of us, a host of adult worries cloud my eyes. I am making to-do lists and rushing through task after task to ensure that everything gets done just so. That day, in fact, on the way to pick up my son I was multitasking - squeezing in just a few more minutes of a podcast while I walked quickly from the parking lot to the school entrance. The podcast was relating some of the top news stories of the day, and my mind was clouded with images of what it looks like when the lion and the lamb refuse to lie down next to one another. The discord was seeping into my bones, and I felt almost heavier as I walked into the building to greet my son. But then, I put my headphones away, and my son and I went on a “mash-a-sheen” hunt through the grade school hallways to procure one 25 cent rainbow pencil. The weight lifted as I let a child guide me and fill my heart with joy.
Author: Gretchen Crowder, Director of Campus Ministry
Finally, he grabbed my hand and led me quickly down one hall and then another before we came to
rest in front of an old, blue “mash-a-sheen” that said “Pencils, 25 cents.” Suddenly, all made sense. “You want a pencil?” I asked him. “Yes,” he replied, “you put money in, and it gives you a pencil. I’ve seen it!” I fished a quarter out of my purse (he did not hide his surprise that mom did in fact have some money), and he gleefully put it into the “mash-a-sheen”. It was one of those where you had to shove the quarter in and then pull the lever back out again, therefore requiring the strength of both mom and son. As we pulled the lever back out, we both watched a rainbow-colored pencil fall out into the tray at its base. My son grabbed the pencil, hugged it, and declared this one of the best moments of his day.
The first reading today is beautiful in its entirety, and there is so much one could say. But as I prayed with it, one line stuck out to me among all the others. In between the descriptions of how peace would unfold between pairs of seemingly opposing creatures on earth, it mentioned that there would be “a little child to guide them.” At this time of year, as I am sure it is true for a lot of us, a host of adult worries cloud my eyes. I am making to-do lists and rushing through task after task to ensure that everything gets done just so. That day, in fact, on the way to pick up my son I was multitasking - squeezing in just a few more minutes of a podcast while I walked quickly from the parking lot to the school entrance. The podcast was relating some of the top news stories of the day, and my mind was clouded with images of what it looks like when the lion and the lamb refuse to lie down next to one another. The discord was seeping into my bones, and I felt almost heavier as I walked into the building to greet my son. But then, I put my headphones away, and my son and I went on a “mash-a-sheen” hunt through the grade school hallways to procure one 25 cent rainbow pencil. The weight lifted as I let a child guide me and fill my heart with joy.
Author: Gretchen Crowder, Director of Campus Ministry
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