The Necklace

Subject: The Necklace Sat Jun 28, 2008 9:11 am

>>>>>>>>>>>> The cheerful little 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 mommy please, Mommy. Can I have them? Please, 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 girl's upturned face.
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> 'A dollar ninety-five. That's almost $2.00. If you really
>>>>>>>>>>>> want them, I'll think of some extra chores for you and in
>>>>>>>>>>>> no t ime you can save enough money to buy them for
>>>>>>>>>>>> yourself. Your birthday's 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 as 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. She's my very
>>>>>>>>>>>> favorite.'
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> 'That's okay, Honey, daddy loves you. Good night.' And he
>>>>>>>>>>>> brushed her cheek with a kiss.
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> About a week later, after the story time, Jenny's daddy
>>>>>>>>>>>> asked again, 'Do you love me?'
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> 'Daddy, you know I love you.'
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> 'Then give me your pearls.'
>>>>>>>>>>>> < B> 'Oh Daddy, not my pearls. But you can have my baby
>>>>>>>>>>>> doll. The brand new one I got for my birthday. She is
>>>>>>>>>>>> beautiful and you can have the yellow blanket that matches
>>>>>>>>>>>> her sleeper.'
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> 'That's okay. Sleep well. God bless you, little one. Daddy
>>>>>>>>>>>> loves 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? What's the matter?'
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> Jenny didn't 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; thi s is for you.'
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> With tears gathering in his own eyes, Jenny's 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 them all the time. He was just waiting for her to
>>>>>>>>>>>> give up the dime-store stuff so he could give her the
>>>>>>>>>>>> genuine treasure. So it is, with our Heavenly Father. He is
>>>>>>>>>>>> waiting for us to give up the cheap things in our lives so
>>>>>>>>>>>> that he can give us beautiful treasures.
>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>> God will never take away something without giving you
>>>>>>>>>>>> something better in its place.
_________________

"The will of God will never take you where the Grace of God will not protect you."

Joined : 25 Jan 2008 Posts : 46

Beautiful Maria. We have all learned by personal experience how much the Father treasures each one of us. Thanks for the story. smile

Love,
Paul

Subject: Re: The Necklace Sun Jun 29, 2008 9:23 pm

That was awesome Maria, thank you for sharing. I love stories like this one, that make you think of how many cheap things(bad habits and so much more) we hold onto, not willing to let go of, and not realizing how much God has to offer us in return
I love you

Joined : 01 Mar 2008 Posts : 97 Location : El Monte, CA

I love that story, it is so true..

Subject: Re: The Necklace Mon Jul 07, 2008 5:24 pm

Forum,

This story is a way to send a spiritual message, like a parabol.

I have thought about it and have found this observations:

Why the father has acted like that with her little daugther?

-She was very happy to have this collar (from the 10 pennies store)

Possibly the father have said in his head" She love this collard so much and she show it to a lot of persons. What these persons think about ME? about our family? They would say " maybe her father is cheap or poor....:-)

The hic in this is that i have never been father.

Just a tought.

CM