Story 8

A teenager works hard all summer to make money to buy a new school wardrobe. Before he goes shopping, he learns that his friend needs financial help.

The Lucky Dog

Mitch Milton had a goal. He would go back to the same school in the fall. But, he was going to be a new guy. No more old t-shirts. He was 16, and this fall he was going to stand out. He would be the guy with the latest clothes. Mitch needed some jobs!

First of all, he collected cans at the local ball park. The recycling center paid him 5¢ for each 20 cans he turned in. There were a lot of cans in the park. He planned to make at least $100 collecting cans.

Secondly, he did yard and garden work. He put flyers up on the park bulletin board. Ten people called him. He had seven yards to mow all summer at $30 each time. He mowed each lawn about twice a week.

Three people who called about the flyer wanted him to do garden work. He made a map and did all three gardens the same way. He planted herbs on one side. Flowers stretched across the front. Vegetables filled the rest of the area.

Mitch’s third job was washing cars. He put a yard sign on a main street near his house. He got about 10 jobs a week. After about three weeks, he started washing the same cars again. Between all his jobs, he worked about 14 hours a day.

In August, a long summer of hard work was coming to an end. Mitch woke up on a Wednesday morning. The first day of school was only a week away. Today was the day for shopping! He put his debit card in his pocket. He was ready to walk out the door when his cell phone rang. It was his friend Todd Bome calling. Mitch said, “Hi, Todd! What’s up?”

Todd said, “It’s Molly. She’s sick. I took her to the vet. She said that Molly needs surgery. I don’t have the money. So, I’m afraid she will die.” Todd sounded like he was about ready to cry.

Mitch said, “Ask your Mom for the money.”

Todd said, “I begged to get a dog. I said I would take care of her. I told my mom that Molly would not cost her a penny. So, I can’t ask my mom to pay $400. Molly looks so sad. I can’t believe I can’t help her.” Todd’s voice cracked.

Mitch said, “That’s a lot of money!” He looked down at his debit card. He thought to himself, “I’m spending $600 on clothes and Molly is going to die. That just doesn’t seem right.” In a dream-like state, Mitch heard himself say, “I’ve got $400 you could use.” At the same time, he saw pictures in his mind. He was at school wearing an old t-shirt. But then he also saw Todd running in the park with Molly.

Todd said, “Are you kidding? That would be great! I promise I will pay you back.”

Mitch said, “I know you will. I’ll go to the bank and get the cash. Then, I’ll bring it to your house.”

“You are the best friend! I’ll see you in a little bit,” Todd said. After he hung up, he hugged Molly. He said, “It’s all going to be OK, girl!”

Mitch dropped the cash off at Todd’s house. Then headed to Joe’s Duds. He knew he couldn’t buy as much as he had planned. But, he also knew that $200 would buy some new things. He thought, “I can always make more money. I can buy more things later.”

Inside the store, a worker was handing out wipe-off tickets. She said, “Rub off the dot and see what your sale will be. Most people will get 10% or 20% off. Each day, two people will get 50% off, and one lucky person will get 80% off.”

Mitch took his ticket. He pulled a dime out and rubbed the spot off. His eyes opened wide. The ticket said, “80% off!” Mitch smiled. He showed his ticket to the girl. She started ringing a bell. Very loudly, she said, “Hear ye! Hear ye! We have a winner. This young man has won the 80% ticket.” To Mitch she said, “Shop away!”

Mitch thought to himself, “I got here at just the right time. Molly was good luck!” Mitch picked out $600 worth of clothes. At the checkout, he smiled again. He felt like such a lucky guy. He had $200 and didn’t even spend it all. He felt even luckier that he had been able to save Molly. On his way to his car, he called Todd. “Have you set a date for the surgery yet?” he asked.

Todd said, “We’re way past that. I called the vet and she had an opening right then. Molly has already had the surgery. Everything went just fine. I think she wants to see you!”

Mitch was planning to go home and try on his new things. But instead, he said, “I’ll be right there.” Todd and Mitch spent the night watching movies. Molly slept at their feet. That night, Mitch hung his new clothes in his closet. He said aloud, “Talk about a perfect day!”

What do you think?

1. Mitch worked about 14 hours per day for the whole summer. Some people have trouble maintaining quality work for eight hours. But Mitch was able to give quality work for 14 hours each day. What do you think helped him keep up the good work?
2. Mitch decided to do all of his shopping in one store. Do you think that is a good choice? Explain.

What would you do?

1. Mitch only spent a few seconds deciding whether or not to help Todd. With very little thought, he offered to give up the dream he had worked for all summer. Say one of your friends had a similar problem. What would you do?

Life Skills in This Story:

• Maintaining quality work for eight hours
• Shopping for clothes
• Volunteering to help a friend or neighbor
• Making and carrying out plans
• Planning yard and garden work
• Seeing letter and idea sequences
• Choosing papers and things to keep
• Counting using the skip method
• Using tallies
• Setting goals
• Identifying realistic job possibilities
• Making sure you wake up on time
• Asking for gardening advice
• Understanding wants versus needs
• Translating sales percents into dollars