“Maxi! Annie! The school bus will be here to pick you up soon for your field trip, please come down,” Mother yelled from the bottom of the stairs as she packed their lunches.
Maxi and Annie quickly finished getting ready and headed downstairs. As they reached the last step, they noticed from the window the bus turning the corner of the street.
“Now children, I’ve packed some sandwiches and a fruit for a snack. Make sure you eat up so you have energy for the day. Now let’s have a quick prayer before you go.”
After the prayer, the children gave their mother a kiss goodbye and excitedly headed out towards the bus.
“Hey Annie! Maxi! Come sit over here, we’ve saved you a spot,” shouted out Jenny who sat beside her twin sister Amy and their little brother, Jacob who was Maxi’s age. These were their neighbours whom they had met a while back and who had become good friends. The children laughed and talked all the while till they reached their destination, a museum.
“Okay children, I need you to listen closely,” the teacher began to speak as the bus came to a complete stop. “We will need to stay close together at all times. Please stay in a line of two. Have your sticker that has your name and our phone number in a place where it is visible.”
As she continued to speak, Annie noticed for the first time a boy on the bus who sat alone. But not only that, his shoes seemed very old and his clothes also. She decided not to jump to any conclusions. They finally all got off the bus and they went in. It was a beautiful experience for all the children as they went through all the sections and saw different, interesting things. Maxi loved the dinosaur section; it was his favourite. Annie, on the other hand, enjoyed the section where there were different ancient manuscripts. Finally, it was lunch time. As all the children sat with their friends at different tables to enjoy their meal, Annie, once again, happened to notice the same boy she had seen on the bus, sitting alone at one of the tables, and he had no lunch. She looked down at her delicious sandwich, with avocado and tomatoes and other favourite vegetables, but she couldn’t bring it to her mouth. Finally she got up, and headed to the table where the boy sat alone.
“Annie? Where are you going?” asked Maxi.
“It looks like she’s going over there, to sit with that boy,” said Amy.
“Isn’t that the new boy? Yes it is, he’s in my class,” said Jacob.
Annie didn’t know what she would say or if she would say anything at all. She found herself in front of the table. Finally she said,
“Hello, my name is Annie, can I sit with you?”
“Ummmmm, okay sure,” answered the boy confused.
“What`s your name?” asked Annie as she pulled out her lunch.
“Paul… Paul Moretti,” he answered shyly.
“Paul, where’s your lunch?”
“Um, I forgot it…. I guess,” Paul said quietly.
“Here, have some of my lunch. My mother made it this morning and it’s delicious!”
“Are you sure? I mean, I am kind of hungry.” Paul’s mouth watered as he saw Annie’s sandwich.
“Here, I’m 100% sure.” Annie handed the sandwich to Paul, and as he ate, she said, “Paul, Jesus teaches us to share. My grandfather taught me a Bible verse; it’s found in Hebrews 13:16 and it says ‘do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices, God is pleased.’”
“I’ve heard about the Bible, but I don’t go to church. Jesus sounds like a very nice person. I’m happy He’s your friend and that He teaches good things,” answered Paul before taking another big bite of the sandwich.
“Well, you can meet Jesus too. I have an idea—the next time my grandfather comes to visit us, you can come and meet him. He will teach you more about Jesus and His teachings,” Annie said happily.
“Thank you Annie, I definitely will accept your invitation.” Paul smiled for the first time during the whole trip.
When they got home, Annie told her mother her experience. Mother was very pleased. They prayed for Paul, and afterwards Mother made a special big sandwich for Annie, with lots of avocado, just like Annie liked it.