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Paul received an
automobile from his brother as a Christmas present.
On Christmas Eve when Paul came out of his office, a
street urchin was walking around the shiny new car, admiring it. "Is this your car,
Mister?" he asked
Paul nodded. "My brother gave
it to me for Christmas." The boy was astounded. "You mean your brother gave it
to you and it didn't cost you nothing? Boy, I wish..." He hesitated. Of course Paul
knew what he was going to wish for. He was going to wish he had a brother like that. But
what the lad said jarred Paul all the way down to his heels.
"I wish," the boy went
on, "that I could be a brother like that."
Paul looked at the boy in
astonishment, then impulsively he added, "Would you like to take a ride in my
automobile?"
"Oh yes, I'd love that."
After a short ride, the boy turned
and with his eyes aglow, said, "Mister, would you mind driving in front of my
house?" Paul smiled a little. He thought he knew what the lad wanted. He wanted to
show his neighbors that he could ride home in a big automobile. But Paul was wrong again
"Will you stop where those two
steps are?" the boy asked. He ran up the steps. Then in a little while Paul heard him
coming back, but he was not coming fast. He was carrying his little crippled brother. He
sat him down on the bottom step, then sort of squeezed up against him and pointed to the
car. "There she is, Buddy, just like I told you upstairs. His brother gave it to him
for Christmas and it didn't cost him a cent. And someday I'm gonna give you one just like
it...then you can see for yourself all the pretty things in the Christmas windows that
I've been trying to tell you about,"
Paul got out and lifted the lad to
the front seat of his car. The shining-eyed older brother climbed in beside him and the
three of them began a memorable holiday ride.
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