Karen

When my brother and I were young, we lived in and ###ran loose through several small coal mining towns### in Pennsylvania and West Virginia because our ###father was a coal miner and our mother was dead.### When school was out and our father was at work### we would dig through the slag dump for good pieces### of coal to collect, sell for pennies, and trade### those pennies for candy at the company store.### Everything was owned by the company: our house,### the store and our father. When my father's## birthday approached, my brother and### I set our minds to getting him a present, and### one that wasn't from the company store. The only### problem was that we had no money except our coal### pennies and no store except the company one.###Our daily rounds included spying on a nearby building### that wasn't owned by the company. Men### with motorcycles, jeans, leather jackets### and hairy faces loafed there on the ###rickety porch and inside. There was music### and lots of loud laughter and other words we did ###not know. Sometimes there were fights--###it was all so interesting to us and so different ###from our father's hard-working and quiet manner.###One day when my brother and I were spying on### the biggest guy in the club--the one we### called "Giant," he caught us! We were prepared### for the worst and only hoped someone would### explain our demise to our father in gentle words.### But Giant wasn't mad. ### He said, "Hey, you guys, stay here and wait for my buddy,### Lenny and tell him I'll be right back. Tell him### to stay right here. Here's a quarter for each### of you. Don't take off or I'll find you!"### Then he got on his motorcycle and rode away. ### My brother and I were glued to the spot,### but as time passed, we grew tired and bored. ###My eyes landed on a magazine stuffed in the### cushion of an old chair on the porch, but when ###I grabbed it, i saw that it was some kind of a catalog.###Inside were things you could get by sending away empty### cigarette packs. Our father didn't smoke but the guys at this club did.###We snuck around the building ###and found the trash cans on the other side.### Our slag pile skills quickly produced several### empty cigarette packs. Then we heard a roar of a### motorcycle around front and ran to see if it was Lenny.### My brother and i yelled to him: "Giant said to wait here--he'll be back!" ### then we ran home. ### Every day for a week, as soon as our father left for work### we dug in the trash can for more empty packs.### Finally, we had enough for the present for our father.###Our quarters were enough to send off the parcel of### cigarette packs and two weeks later, a box showed up ###in our mail. My brother and I couldn't believe our ###trash collecting bought this shiny red and### white thermos! Now our father could take hot coffee### and soup with him down into the mine### and keep warm, and not get sick and die.### It was our proudest moment the day we gave### it to my father and he smiled and marveled at our resourcefulness.### And he carried that thermos down into### the mine every day until he retired.