Long, long ago, when I was a child during the Great Depression, there was
an appeal in our Indianapolis newspaper for money for the "Babies' Milk
Fund" to buy milk for poor infants.
I suspect that my parents were encouraging when I decided that this was
something I should do something about! We neighborhood kids who played
hide and seek, run sheep run, etc together came up with a plan. We would
collect empty bottles, which could be turned in at the grocery store for a
penny apiece, and give that money to the Fund.
One of the girls had a little red wagon--you remember those--and offered to
bring it along to carry the bottles we collected. She and her little
sister joined me, and we set off around the neighborhood, on our errand of
mercy. As we bravely knocked on doors, asking for empty bottles we could
return for credit at the store, and explaining our "cause", neighbors
responded graciously. Soon we had filled the wagon with as much as it
would hold, and headed for the neighborhood grocery--no supermarket in
those days.
Cashing in our bottles, we were excited to learn that we had a grand total
of 27 cents---a much more impressive sum then than it would be for kids
today ! Our next target was the branch bank, also within walking
distance, where we could turn in the money to be credited to the Milk Fund,
and the three of us headed there (without the wagon).
The bank was pretty impressive---vaulted ceiling, rows of cashiers cages
behind high counters, floor of marble--the works. We made our way to one
of the cashier's windows, stood on tiptoe to hand her the coins,
instructed her that they were for the Fund, then made it out of there as
quickly as possible, feeling very proud and benevolent.
The next day's paper , which always listed contributions to the Fund, had a
headline that read "Three Little Girls Give 27 Cents"---and a brief article
which described us and said we had not given our names---our take on that
was,"Nobody asked us !" . I kept that yellowed clipping for many
years,as a reminder of how important a tiny act of concern could be---and
how good it felt to know we had tried to "make a difference".
Camilla Flintermann <[log in to unmask]>
On PDWebring at :
http://members.tripod.lycos.nl/genugten/flinterm.htm
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"You must *be* the change you wish to see in the world" - Gandhi
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