"KATE-LYNN'S NEW BIKE" ©


Early one morning while Elliott was still in bed sleeping, the phone rang. "Oh, I wonder who that could be," said Elliott, as he wiped the sleep from his eyes. Then he jumped out of bed and ran to get the phone. "Hi Elliott, this is Kate-Lynn. I hope I didn't wake you." "Oh..errr...no...," said Elliott. "I was just about to get out of bed anyway. I'm always up around 8:00 AM on Sunday mornings," Elliott said as he chuckled. "Sorry Elliott, but this is really important." "OK then, let's hear it," said Elliott. "Well Elliott, I can finally ride with you and the rest of the kids. My dad came home with a bike for me last night. It was one of the best mornings ever. There it was just sitting in my room. When I got up, I thought it was a dream." "Oh Kate-Lynn I'm so happy for you...that's great!" Then Kate-Lynn asked Elliott if he would like to come over and help clean it up. Elliott asked, "what do you mean, clean it up?" "Well my dad went over to that store Elliott...you know the one. The name of it is "Care To Share ©." "Oh that's great," said Elliott. "That's where people donate their items and help out lots of people. Oh Kate-Lynn I'm sure the bike is great. But I'll come over today and we'll clean it up together. And then how about we go riding after that?" "Oh Elliott I'm so excited...you're the greatest friend ever!"

Later that morning Elliott got dressed and told his mom and dad that he was going to ride his bike over to Kate-Lynn's. And that's just what he did. Kate-Lynn was so happy to show off her new bike. She took Elliott by the hand and led the way to the yard. There it was, pink and blue. Kate-Lynn's favorite colors. "Well, what do you think Elliott?" "It's great!" "Well Elliott, we're all set up to wash it." Kate-Lynn had two buckets. One filled with soap and water and one with just water. "This one is for rinsing Elliott."

She handed Elliott a sponge and they both started scrubbing. They scrubbed that bike for hours. "Clean as a whistle," Elliott said. "Yes, I agree. Now we can go for a ride. Oh one last thing before we take off. My dad wants to oil the chain. So they called out to Kate-Lynn's dad to let him know they were finished. Her dad said that they both did a great job. Kate-Lynn's dad oiled the chain and off they went. "Follow me," Kate-Lynn said as she led the way to the schoolyard. Kate-Lynn was so happy. She couldn't wait to show her friends. Finally they arrived at the schoolyard.

"Hey guys look...it's Elliott and Kate-Lynn!" "Nice bike Kate-Lynn. Where'd you get it?" "My dad bought it for me last night. It was a surprise." "It doesn't look new," said Troy. "Well it is new...to me! My dad bought it at "Care To Share©" "Oh that's not a store that sells new bikes," said Troy. "That's that place where you can buy used stuff." Troy made Kate-Lynn feel very bad. Her feelings were hurt. She was upset and wanted to leave. Just then Elliott said to Troy, "Listen! It's not important which store her bike came from! That doesn't matter! You're supposed to be her friend Troy and you're making her feel bad about her bike. That's wrong! Come on Kate-Lynn. Let's go," said Elliott. Well all the kids were very upset with Troy for making Kate-Lynn feel bad. After all they didn't care where her bike came from. They were just happy she could finally ride with them.

All the kids started to ride away from Troy. "Hey what's wrong guys? What did I do?" "Well Troy, instead of saying something nice to Kate-Lynn about her bike, you hurt her feelings." "Well I didn't mean to." "Then you need to tell her." So all the kids followed Elliott and Kate-Lynn. "Hey Elliott...Kate-Lynn...wait for us," they shouted. Kate-Lynn and Elliott stopped their bikes to listen to what Troy had to say.

"Kate-Lynn, I'm sorry for hurting your feelings. I think you have a great new bike and I'm so happy you can ride with us now. What store your bike came from...that's not important and I am really sorry." "It's OK," said Kate-Lynn. "I just want you to know one thing Troy. Not everyone can buy a bike. Some times families can't afford them. The "Care To Share Store ©" makes it possible for me and lots of other kids to have bikes. That's what is important." And all the kids agreed with Kate-Lynn. Thank goodness for people who "Care To Share ©!"

The End

About the Author Maria Lisa Hartgrove is a native of Boston, Massachusetts. She is the mother of three who enjoys writing. She created the character of Elliott from life experiences of her own children. Maria teaches us tolerance, love and understanding using humor and real-life experiences. Maria's goal is to one day make a "Camp Elliott," where every child can have an adventure of their own. Maria still resides in the New England area where she continues to raise her three children with her husband and two dogs, Molly and Buttons.

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