Brenden's Box

It was summer at last! It was the first day of summer vacation. The children were happy. Now they would have time to run and play and have fun. They could stay up a little later at night because they did not have to get up for school every day. The children loved summer vacation.

Max played with his friends and with his Game Boy. Tori and Cheyenne were already thinking up some new type of girl game to play. Christian and the babies didn’t know it was vacation, but they had fun playing anyway.

Brenden sat on the top bunk bed in his room with a box of Legos. He started to make a wonderful airplane, but he couldn’t find the right pieces. Also, he couldn’t figure out how to put some of the pieces together. Leaving the Legos on top of the bed, he climbed down and went to find Max.

Max was stretched out on the floor watching cartoons. 

“Wanna play with me?” asked Brenden.

“Nah,” Max replied. “I am watching Sponge Bob Square Pants. Maybe later.”

Sadly, Brenden went to find Tori. The door to her room was shut. He could hear her and Cheyenne giggling inside. He opened the door.

“Get outta here, pest,” Cheyenne said.

“Yeah,” said Tori. “We are playing with our Barbies. No boys allowed.”

Sadly Brenden went into the back yard. Rosalinda was watching Christian and the babies playing in the water. They had spoons, a funnel, and little plastic buckets and were busily scooping up water from the large plastic swimming pool. Christian poured a bucket of water on Karolyn’s head. She shrieked with delight and splashed the water with her spoon. Katharyn had climbed into the pool with all her clothes on. 

“¿Quieres jugar, mihijo?” Rosalinda asked as she held out a spoon.

Brenden just shook his head and went back in the house. “That’s baby stuff,” he thought. “I’m bored,” he thought. There is nothing to do and no one to play with.” He flopped down on the floor by Max, but he didn’t really want to watch the cartoons. Poor bored Brenden.

On the second day of vacation, after breakfast Max and Tori gathered their things to walk down to the neighborhood pool.

“Wait for me,” Brenden called as he ran to get his swim suit.

“No, Brenden, you can’t go,” said Tori. “You are too little and you can’t swim, so you have to wait until Mom gets home.”

Just then Kevin rang the bell. “Come on, let’s go,” he called. The big kids ran happily down the street toward the pool.

Brenden hung his head and went back in the living room. It was very hot outside, so Rosalinda had put a little plastic slide in the middle of the floor. The twins were climbing up and sliding down, giggling and laughing. Christian began to climb up the slide as Karolyn was coming down.

“¡ Cuido, Jojo!” Said Rosalinda. “Venga, Flaca y Gorda. “ “Be careful, Jojo. Come here girls.” 

Brenden began to climb the slide, but Rosalinda said, “No, mihijo, you are too big for that.” 

Sadly, poor Brenden went back in his room, climbed on the top bunk with his Legos, and played for a few minutes. He wanted to cry. “I am too little for some things. I am too big for other things. What can I do? I am stuck in the middle and I am bored!”

On the third day of vacation it was Saturday. Mom was at work, so Dad packed all the children into the van and drove across town to visit Grandma.

“Hooray,” thought Brenden. “There is always plenty to do at Grandma’s house.”

First the children swam in Grandma’s pool. Brenden clung onto Grandma like a little leach. She pushed him away and said, “You are getting to be a big boy. You need to learn to swim so you can go to the pool with the big kids. “ Brenden kicked his feet and flailed his arms wildly. It was hard for him to learn to swim because he was so skinny he didn’t float. He was learning, but it was hard and very slow.

Inside, Max played Legos for a while with Brenden. Kevin wasn’t around to play with, so Max showed Brenden how to put together the hard pieces. When they finished, Grandma reminded them to put the Legos away so the little kids wouldn’t scatter them around.

Next, Brenden and Tori sat at the counter and did some “artsy craftsy” with the big box of things Grandma kept on the shelf for them. Brenden especially liked to draw with glitter glue. He made a giant glittery spider and put it on Grandma’s refrigerator with a magnet. He started to go and find Max again, but Grandma called him back. “Brenden, put your things away. Otherwise the babies will get into them and make a mess. You know, you could play with “artsy craftsy” stuff at home by yourself if you would only remember to put your things away when you are done. It isn’t safe to leave them out. The babies could get sick if they put glue and glitter in their mouths, and they would mess up the house with them.”

Max was playing with his Game Boy, so Tori and Brenden found Grandma in the kitchen. “Let’s make some cookies,” Brenden said. So the three of them stirred and baked and iced and finally ate a big batch of cookies. They shared their cookies with the others. 

“I like to make cookies, “ said Brenden. “But I am too little to cook at home, even with Tori to help me. That is, if she isn’t doing girl things with Cheyenne. When we use the oven, we have to have an adult to help us. I wish I could cook by myself, “ he said, as he gave a big sigh.

Grandma laughed. “Well, I will just have to give you some recipes you can cook all by yourself. But Brenden, you will have to learn to clean up your mess when you finish. Mom and Rosalinda don’t like to clean up messes you make. That isn’t fair.”

“Well, I always have to clean up the messes Jojo and the twins make!” said Brenden. “That isn’t fair either.”

“Jojo and the babies are still too little to pick up much,” said Grandma. “But Rosalinda is good about telling them to put their toys away. Part of the messes you have to clean up are because you leave out your own things and the babies get into them and scatter them about. You will have to remember to close the door to your room and keep your things picked up and out of their way. “

“But Christian can open our door!” protested Brenden and Max, talking at the same time.

“Let’s ask Dad to put one of those baby-proof things on the door knob,” said Grandma.

“We did,” said Max, “but he keeps forgetting to get us any.

Grandma’s eyes twinkled, but she just said “Hmmm.”

As the children ate the wonderful cookies they had made, Brenden wandered around the house. He picked up a china cat, but instead of putting it down where he got it, he carried it into the living room and put it down near the bird cage. He saw a jar full of bird seed, and took them to Grandma. “Grandma, are these sunflower seeds?” he asked. “Can I have some to plant in my yard?”

“Yes, you may have some and I think they might grow,” said Grandma. “Did you clean the weeds out of the garden cart we made last year?”

Brenden shook his head “no.” 

“Well, “ laughed Grandma, “That is one thing you can do by yourself to keep from being bored. If you pull out all the old weeds I will give you some new plants to put in your little garden. “

Leaving the jar of birdseed on the kitchen counter, Brenden wandered over to the brown rocker and saw a wicker basket on the floor near it. He peeked into the basket. It was full of magazines. He began putting the magazines on the rocker and he found, under the magazines, a little book that said “My Family Album” on the front. Leaving the magazines on the rocker and the basket open, he ran to find Grandma who was outside on the patio.

“Look what I found, Grandma,” said Brenden. “Who made this book? It looks like a kid did it.”

Grandma smiled and invited him to sit on the garden bench by her. “Let’s just read this book and see if you can guess who made it, “ she said.

She opened the cover and read the first page. It said, “To Mama and Daddy with love, Sammy.”

“Oh!” said Brenden. “Did my Daddy make this book?”

“Yes he did,” said Grandma with a big smile. “And he was just your age – six years old – when he made it. And he made it by himself! That is something you can do this summer. Each day, make a page and when you are through we will make them into a book for you to give your Mom and Dad.”

Brenden and Grandma read Sam’s book. Each page had a picture and a story. The next page said, “This is Mommy. She loves me a lot.” Brenden could read most of the words of the book all by himself. The next page said “This is my Dad. He is 37 years old.” Other pages said “This is my sister Joanna. She plays Snoopy with me. This is my raccoon. He eats anything we eat.”

“Grandma, did Dad really have a raccoon?” asked Brenden.

“Yes,” said Grandma. “We found a little baby raccoon whose Mama had been run over so we took him home and fed him. His name was Racket because he cried so loudly. When he was grown, we turned him loose back in the wild woods.”

They continued reading the pages about Sam’s gerbils and other pets. On the very last page there was a photo of Sam. He had written “Here I am. This was my very first day in School, August 1979.” On almost every page, Grandma had a story to tell about when Brenden’s Dad was a little boy. Brenden and Grandma enjoyed reading the book and the stories very much. 

“I am going to make a book this summer, so my Mom can read it to my children when I am old,” exclaimed Brenden. 

“That’s a good idea,” said Grandma, as she walked back into the house. Brenden followed her, leaving their book on the bench.

Bobo was squawking in his cage. 

“Oh,” said Grandma, “I think Bobo is hungry. We must give him some seed.” She and Brenden went in to see Bobo. His seed dish was empty.

Grandma looked on the shelf where his seed should be, but they weren’t there. Instead, there was a ceramic cat in the place where the seed jar should be.

Brenden’s eyes got very big. He put his hand up to his mouth as he said, “Oh!”

“Brenden, where are Bobo’s seed, and what is this cat doing here?” Grandma said in her sternest voice. 

“I’m sorry, Grandma,” said Brenden. “I forgot. I will put the cat back where it goes and find Bobo’s seed. Just wait here.”

Brenden raced to replace the little cat on the shelf where it belonged and then to the kitchen to get the jar of seed. As he was picking up the seed jar, he glanced out the patio window and noticed his Dad’s book on the garden bench. He ran out and got the book and took it to the basket by the brown rocker. As he put the book back into the basket, he noticed that he had left the magazines on the seat of the rocker, so he put them back where they belonged, too. Then he carried the seed into the living room to Grandma.

“What took you so long?” she asked. “Bobo is squawking because he is very hungry,” she said as she opened the cage and poured some seed into the little bird’s dish.

“Oh Grandma,” Brenden said. “I am sorry.” Brenden felt very sad and he was starting to cry. “I was such a bad boy. I got everything out of place and I didn’t put anything back,” he said as the tears began to splash down his cheek, making large wet spots where the dripped off his face onto his nice clean shirt.

Grandma pulled him close and gave him a giant hug. “You aren’t a bad boy, Brenden. Sometimes you just don’t seem to see the messes you make! Maybe you need some special glasses,” she suggested with a smile and that twinkle in her eye again. “Will you try and do better about cleaning up this summer? If you will, I think you will get a nice surprise.”

“I promise,” said Brenden. “I will help Rosalinda every day without complaining. I will try to remember to shut the door to my room, and if Christian gets in I will help him learn to pick up his mess, too.”

Now, since Brenden isn’t grown yet, it was very hard for him to remember to put things back in place, to shut his door, and to pick up his messes without complaining. But he tried very hard to keep his promise to Grandma.

A few days later, Dad came in the door carrying a big box. The children all crowded around. “What is that?” they asked. 

“This is for Brenden,” Dad said. “It is a surprise from Grandma. It is his anti-boredom box.” He handed the box to Brenden.

Excitedly, Brenden sat down on the floor to open the surprise. The box was filled with little paper sacks, each with a number. There was a note from Grandma on the top. It said, “Dear Brenden, I know you have been trying very hard to keep your promise to pick up things and put them in their place. Here are some things I think will help you keep from being bored this summer. Open the packages in order by their numbers. I love you, Grandma.”

“Here’s the first one,” said Tori as she reached in the box and grabbed up the sack with the number 1 printed on it.

Brenden snatched the sack back out of her hand. “Hey!” he said, “That’s MY stuff! Hands off. I don’t grab your old Barbies away from you and Cheyenne.”

Dad said, “Children, I am sure Brenden will let you see everything. Please don’t fight.”

Brenden opened the first sack. Inside was a huge pair of glasses, but they didn’t have any glass lens in them. There was also a note. The note said, “These are special glasses. It is always hard for children to remember to clean up their own messes because they sometimes can’t even see what messes they made. Put on the magic glasses and go into every room. Look hard through the glasses and they will help you see your own messes and other things that are out of place so you can keep your promise to Grandma. “ 

Brenden tried on the glasses. The first thing he saw was a piece of his Leggo set lying on the floor in front of the television. He jumped up to go and put it in the box in his room where it belonged. 

“Oh, I want to try those,” said Tori. Brenden handed over the magic glasses and Tori found a Barbie shoe on the couch. All the children had to try the magic glasses. Max found a Yu-gi-o card he had been looking for. It was under the coffee table. Christian just laughed and poked his fat little fingers through the open glasses right into his eye. He yelled “Owwww!” The twins both grabbed for the glasses and almost broke them, but Dad rescued them. 

“Open the second package,” demanded Tori.

Brenden opened the sack with the number 2. Inside were two doorknob covers. “Hooray!” he shouted. “Now Christian can’t get in our room!”

Dad reminded him, “That’s right, but YOU have to remember to shut the door.” 

The sack with the number 3 had a packet of seed and a new little garden tool set and a pair of garden gloves. A note with them said, “Wear the gloves when you pull the weeds and use the tools to make a new garden. You must remember to water your garden every day.”

The sack with the number 4 had a coupon. The coupon read “Good for swimming lessons for Brenden at the YMCA.”

Sack number 5 had a small card. The card was a recipe for cookies that Brenden and Tori could make without using the stove! The recipe said:

2 c. oatmeal
¼ c. honey
6 oz. raisins or chocolate chips
½ c. peanut butter
powdered sugar on a plate

Mix all the ingredients thoroughly. Roll into marble size balls. Roll the balls on a plate of powdered sugar. Store them in the refrigerator. CLEAN UP YOUR MESS! In an hour or two, you can eat your cookies. Love, Grandma.

Sack number 6 was the last sack, and it was the biggest one. Inside was a big wooden box with a little lock on the front. The lock was locked. 

“How can I open this box?” Brenden asked. The lock had a three dials with numbers on the bottom, so Brenden twirled the dials but the lock didn’t open. Max tried it too, but he couldn’t open it either. Tori couldn’t guess the right numbers either. Christian and the twins fiddled with the lock but they couldn’t get the box open. 

“Dad,” wailed Brenden, “What am I supposed to do with this locked box?” 

“You are getting to be a big boy now, Brenden. You will have to figure out the mystery yourself,” said Dad. 

Brenden tried to open the box for a long time, but he couldn’t figure it out. 

Finally, Mother said, “Brenden, isn’t there something you are forgetting to do?”

At first Brenden looked puzzled. Then his eyes opened wide and his hand flew up to his mouth as he said, “Oh! I forgot to tell Grandma thank you for my surprise box!” Then he started laughing. “Of course, now why didn’t I think of that at first,” he muttered.

Brenden went to the telephone. Dad gave him the phone number and he called Grandma. When she answered, Brenden said, “Grandma, thank you very much for my surprise box. I will use the things in it to help me keep from being bored this summer. It was nice of you to think of it. But Grandma, you forgot to put a note with the wooden box telling me how to open it. What is inside the box? And how to I open it?”

Grandma laughed, “I didn’t forget, she said. You are learning to put away your things, and now you can keep Christian out of your room if you remember to shut the door. But just like all boys, even big ones, you may forget and Christian and the babies might make a mess of your things. If I tell you how to open the lock, will you always remember to put the things inside it back into the box when you are through with them and lock it back up? That way, no one but you can use those things, although it would be kind to share them with Max and Tori sometime.”

“Oh, I promise,” squealed Brenden happily.

“Well,” said Grandma. “You see the three little dials on the bottom of the lock? Turn the first one to seven, the second to one, and the third one to two. That is your birthday, so you can remember the code: the seventh month and the twelfth day.”

“Thank you again,” said Brenden. “I love you, goodbye.”

Then Brenden got his wooden box and turned the dials. The lock sprang open. Inside was a roll of waxed paper to cover the table when he was working. There were some crayons, some scissors, some paint and a brush, some glitter glue, some paste and a pack of paper. “Wow!” he said, “Now I can make a book so my Mom can read it to my kids when I am grown.” 

Dad whispered something into Brenden’s ear.

For the rest of the summer, Brenden had things to do and he wasn’t bored at all! The last day of the summer, the family went to visit Grandma for a final swim. After supper, Brenden said, “Grandma, I have a surprise for you. “ He ran out to the car and returned, carrying a wooden box. The box was locked. He handed it to Grandma. “Dad helped me make the box, and I saved my allowance to get the lock, but I made what is inside just for you. You can keep it in there until I have children, and there is room for other things you want to keep safe.”

Grandma turned the dials on the lock to 712 but the lock wouldn’t open.

Brenden giggled and said, “Now Grandma, you are a big girl and you have to figure it out by yourself! “ This time, he was the one whose eyes were twinkling.

Grandma thought and thought. Then she laughed and turned the dials to 513, her own birthday numbers. The lock sprang open. Inside was a beautiful book. The cover said “My Family Album, by Brenden Ball.”