Jimmy Smiled

Jimmy Smiled

“What happened!?” Ted said, coming around the corner to find six-year-old Jimmy, and the scene before him.

The backyard looked like it had been hit by a tornado. The swings were wrapped around the top of the swing set. The slide was covered with flower pots, rakes, and folding chairs. Another folding chair was hanging from the porch steps rail. The fallen leaves that had been all over the grass were blown over to one side, on top of Mom’s gardens, unfortunately.

“Mom is going to kill somebody!”

“Why,” asked Jimmy, “She said all the leaves had to be off the grass. She never swings, and hardly ever sits in the chairs out here.”

“You did this?”

“Yes! So you can teach me to baseball! See, I made a baseball diamond right in our back yard!”

Ted now noticed the two door mats and what appeared to be round bucket covers out in the yard. He did it, he made a baseball diamond. Just then Mom came out on the porch and started yelling.

“What did you boys do to my flower garden! You better clean that up immediately, and you’re both grounded too!”

Ted looked at Jimmy, he was obviously confused. “But the yard is all clean now!” he said.

“I knew that would happen. It’s the flowers, Mum likes the flowers more. If you help, we can get all the leaves out without breaking the flowers then she’ll be happy.”

“And then?”

“And then I guess I will teach you some things about baseball. Next time, when we’re not grounded, we can go practice at the park. Deal?”

“I never do things right do I?” Jimmy said, sadly.

“You do things perfectly.” Jeff said, “Just the way I did them when I was six!”

Jimmy smiled.