The Wish Stealers
Page 16
They both waved. Stanley, smiling, came to the edge of the steps to greet them.
“Hello!” he said, bending down to talk to them. “Thanks to you and that lucky penny, my life has done a flip-flop.”
“Really?” said Griffin.
“That old penny you gave me was magic! While I was walking down the street, I accidently dropped it. The penny rolled away, and I thought, ‘Just like my life, things rolling away.’ But for some reason I chased that penny, and when I scooped it up, I stood face-to-face with a poster on a telephone pole. It was a picture of Aurora playing in town! Well, I scrounged some money to buy a ticket to her concert, and on the way out I bumped into her. I gave her my CD, and the rest is history!”
Aurora came to the edge of the platform. “Hello, Griffin and Garrett. Congratulations.”
“Thank you,” said Griffin.
“Thank you for helping me find Stanley. Talent like his doesn’t come along very often. When I listened to his CD, I knew he was the accompanist I needed! I invited him to come on tour with me.”
“Cool!” said Garrett.
Griffin beamed.
“Attention, please. Your attention, please!” said Principal Yeldah through the microphone.
“We’re really proud of you both!” said Aurora.
The surging crowd shifted their attention to the stage. Griffin’s heart pounded. From the raised steps she observed people pushing closer to the platform. Garrett’s dad and mom held hands in the crowd close to the stage. Libby cheered nonstop.
Griffin’s head spun when she noticed the top of a Sunflower Assisted Living Home van. Painted on the van’s windows in bubble letters were the words “Thanks, Griffin! Thanks, Garrett! Yay, Penny!” Had Florence and her friends come to the ceremony?
Griffin’s heart hammered harder.
“Are you ready?” whispered Principal Yeldah from the stage.
“Yep,” said Garrett and Griffin. Alfred from the metal shop arrived on the platform steps.
“Hi, Alfred,” she whispered.
“Hi,” he whispered back, and blushed. Griffin guessed he was nervous too.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” said the principal, “may I have your attention please on this beautiful Saturday in Dadesville!”
Everybody cheered.
“Today we celebrate the remarkable efforts of some of our young citizens who want to make a difference in our world, want to make changes and help our planet. By starting small but thinking big they raised awareness and collected pennies for the charity Pennies for the Planet. From the incredible support of fellow students and the town community, more than five thousand dollars was raised for our planet! I am also thrilled to announce that the Bank of Dadesville has matched that sum, making the grand total for Pennies for the Planet ten thousand dollars!”
Wild applause erupted from the audience.
Griffin, Garrett, and Alfred all high-fived.
“Here today is Dr. Fonda to accept a check that will be used to prevent deforestation of our Earth. But before we present the check, would Griffin Penshine, Garrett Forester, and Alfred Coombs come up onstage and share a few words?”
Alfred spoke first. “Hi, I’m Alfred Coombs, and my grandpa always told me two things: He said, in the words of Benjamin Franklin, ‘A penny saved is a penny earned.’ I’ve been saving pennies all my life. But the second thing my grandpa always said to me was, ‘Never be penny wise and pound foolish,’ which means know what’s really valuable and don’t skimp on the important things! I’m so proud to give all these years of saved pennies to help our planet.”
Applause again rang through the audience.
Garrett took the microphone and spoke next. “I’m Garrett Forester. Doing your part for the planet is cool! Helping out is like being an alchemist—you can turn regular old things like pennies into gold! Peace out!”
Cheers rolled in giant waves across the town green.
Griffin unfolded her speech and scanned the sea of faces. Her mom, her dad, and Caelum were smiling like bright stars in the crowd.
“Good morning, everyone. My name is Griffin Penshine, and I would like to thank all the students of GWL and the citizens of Dadesville for everything you have done to help support our Earth by donating to Pennies for the Planet. It is so important to donate, but it is also important to do little things that add up to big things, like planting a tree every year, not littering, or taking the time to campaign against something you believe is hurting our environment. A lot of little efforts can add up to giant efforts.
“If you look very, very closely at a penny, in supersmall letters you’ll see a phrase on each and every one. It reads e pluribus unum, which means ‘out of many, one.’ Just think, if many small groups all over the whole world did their part—and we combined all those caring groups into one group—think how much we could accomplish to stop the destruction of the rain forest! To stop pollution! To promote peace!
“Out of all the pennies that were donated, I have one very old penny that I have been saving for a long time.” Digging into her pocket, Griffin pulled out the “world peace” penny. “Some people believe that if you wish on a penny, your wish just might come true if you don’t let anybody say, ‘It’s impossible! Give up! Don’t be silly!’ Never let Wish Stealers steal your dreams and make you ashamed for trying. I was hoping all of you out there today could make a wish for world peace on this penny.”
The townspeople roared applause in response.
Griffin counted, “One! Two! Three!”
The audience hushed, and everyone made a silent wish for world peace.
Holding the penny high over her head, Griffin tossed the penny into the town fountain. It arced in the sky, sparkling like the most brilliant beacon.
You must be the change
you wish to see in the world.
—Gandhi
Acknowledgments
My first thanks goes to the Wish Givers in my life who helped make this book possible. A profound thanks to my editors: Ellen Krieger, whose extraordinary notes and brilliance helped refine this book and take it to another level; and to Fiona Simpson, whose wisdom and astute guidance helped give form to its finished shape. A heartfelt thanks to my manager, Fonda Snyder, who understands the secret labyrinth of a story like no other and whose intelligence and warmth make working with her a joy and honor.
An incredible thanks to my husband, Alexander Trivas, who read this book a gazillion times, offering priceless feedback and who cut any and all of Garrett’s dialogue that sounded like a forty-seven-year-old man in a tweed jacket. Alexander’s love, brilliance, support, and kindness are appreciated more than words can express. To our daughter, Hadley, whose intelligence, humor, and empathy shine through already. May you always be filled with courage and grace to pursue and fulfill your wishes, whatever they may be.
Thanks to my mother for her optimism, and to my father for his quiet and deep love of art. They have been Wish Givers in my life, championing writing, art, teaching, and creating as great ways to spend one’s time. A huge cheer for my brothers, who refused to hear from any Wish Stealers and pursued their dreams: Scott as an airplane and helicopter pilot and Todd as an innovator in technology. An incredible thank-you to my in-laws, Sam and Stephanie, whose love and strong arms surround our family every day.
To the great teachers of my life who were true Wish Givers: Dr. Anderson, Mrs. Burns, Mrs. Skripol, and Professor Gelfant, I am grateful. Thank you to the sparkly eyed librarians: Mrs. Fournier, who let me hide out at recess in the Duffy Elementary School library to read; and Linda Clancy, the West Hartford town librarian who saved the Anne of Green Gables books for me. A huge thank-you to the great team at Simon & Schuster, especially Bess Braswell, Paul Crichton, Andrea Kempfer, and Alyson Heller. To the friends who read drafts or sections of this book, offering insights, support, or expert information, I am grateful: Aury, Lauren, Robert, Jake, Jennie, Regan, Todd, Elaine, Jyoti, Sarah, Jonathan, Stephanie, Benny, Ilana, Sara, Dennis, McCab
e’s Guitar Store, Dr. Thomas, Griffin, Audree, Lily, Gabrielle, Yapha, Elisabeth, Jared, Michelle, Nicole, Madison, Bob, Maggie, Ketaki, Eileen, and Eden. A very special thanks to Merly, as always, and to Maria and Crystal, too.
To the readers of this book, I wish you so much luck, love, and happiness as you navigate the Wish Stealers of the world, keep company with the hearty Wish Givers you encounter, and pursue, protect, and believe in your wishes.
Check out
PENNIES FOR THE PLANET
to see how you can make a change!
www.penniesfortheplanet.org
Check out
THE
WORLD WISH
PROJECT
www.worldwishproject.com
This is a website to make kids’ wishes come true
and create a forum for kids to inspire kids all over the planet
to change the world! Peace, clean water and air,
and saving the Amazon rain forest are all possible!