by Brielle Russell
Mary was sleeping. A moment later she wasn’t. “Mama’s sick,” her brother Philip said, panicking. “She said she has a raging fever and…” His voice broke off as he started crying. Mary pulled off her covers and got out of bed. “I’m going,” she said defiantly, “I’ll try to help.” Philip tried to convince her not to go but Mary was already gone.
As it turned out, their mother did have a fever. But either way, Mary and Philip had to attend school. On the way home, Mary and Philip were very gloomy. During the day they received a letter saying their mother’s fever had gotten worse. The doctor had come but he soon caught it too and had to leave. They slowly trudged back home. Suddenly, Philip heard a BAM! He turned around to find his sister lying on the ground. “What happened?” he asked. “I’m fine. Probably tripped,” said Mary, wiping dirt off her face. “Let’s go,” she urged. Philip wasn’t paying attention. He was now on his knees examining something that looked like a box. “It’s just a box, Philip come on.” “Can you read what this says,” he asked. “Please!” Mary took the box and read “Inside is a treasure that may only be used for someone who is suffering.” All of a sudden Mary had an idea. They could use that box and its treasure for their mother. “Come on!” said Mary picking up the box. “Let’s go home!”
As soon as they got home, Mary went into her room. She carefully opened the box’s lid and found a beautiful necklace made of rose quartz and bronze. Mary also found a short story written on a piece of paper. “I’ll read that later,” she told Philip. Mary crept into her mother’s room slowly and silently. She put the necklace around her neck. Mary and Philip’s mother recovered quickly. By dinner time she was able to join them again. Their home was a happy place again.
Later that night, Mary went back to her room to read the story of the box. She opened the paper and read, “A boy once lived with his grandmother who was a healer. Before passing away, his grandmother created a special box made of elderwood and lined with red velvet. Inside lay a memorable necklace that, when worn, would help a human being to stop suffering from illness and pain.”
THE END