Stories

Stop and Think

By Diana R. Jenkins

“They’re all out of Nick’s Picks! This is a disaster!”

“Come on, Jen,” said my friend, Kara. “They have a thousand different candies here.”

“But Nick’s Picks have chocolate goo and chocolate chips and a chocolate coating!” I stared sadly at the empty bin. “I just love Nick’s Picks.”

Kara laughed. “You love anything chocolate!”

Which was true. I didn’t eat tons of candy, but every Friday, on our way home from school, I bought something chocolate in Nick’s Sweet Shop.

“I wanted Nick’s Picks for my last treat before Lent,” I said. “I’m giving up candy.”

“No kidding!” said Kara. “You always give up candy for Lent.”

“Hey, I think I’ll get some chocolate eggs instead.” I bought the candy and put it in my backpack for later. As Kara and I continued home, I asked, “What are you doing for Lent?”

“Dad and I are volunteering at the food bank on Saturdays. Why don’t you do that, too?”

“Instead of giving up candy?”

“You could do something different this year. For once!”

“But I always give up candy,” I said.

We walked on a bit. Then Kara asked, “But why? Why do you always give up candy?”

What kind of question was that? “Well, duh, it’s Lent!”

“But you don’t have to do the candy thing. So why do you?”

“Well...I....” I tried to remember what I’d been taught about Lent. “It’s a sacrifice! Yeah, that’s it. We make sacrifices during Lent to remind us of what Jesus sacrificed for us!”

“Exactly,” said Kara. “Lent is supposed to make us stop and think.”

“I guess.” I had never thought of Lent that way.

“So think about doing something different,” she said. “Like going to the food bank with Dad and me.”

When Kara gets an idea, she can talk it into the ground. “Okay, I’ll think about it,” I said, just to get her off the subject.

But Kara didn’t give up. At school on Monday, she asked me again about helping at the food bank.

“I’m doing the candy thing,” I told her.

“Did you really think about the food bank?” she asked. “Really?”

“Yes, I really thought about it!” For at least two or three seconds!

She didn’t say anything else then, but on Ash Wednesday, Kara started bugging me again at lunch. “If you don’t want to volunteer at the food bank, try something else,” she said. “People do lots of different things during Lent. Like working on bad habits. Or helping others. You don’t have to do the same old thing!”

“What’s wrong with doing the same thing?” I asked.

She pointed to my lunch. “Even before you opened that bag, I knew you’d have a peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich, carrot sticks, and an apple.”

“So?”

“Do you ever stop and think about trying something different? No! You just make yourself the same lunch every morning.”

“Are you saying I’m boring?” She was starting to make me mad!

“No,” she said, “I’m just saying that you can never be different if you don’t do anything different. Lent is a good time to think about that, you know.”

“Whatever,” I said.

On Friday, it was tough to pass Nick’s door. “Man! Listen to that chocolate!” I joked as Kara and I walked by.

She laughed. “You can hear chocolate?”

“Yes, and it’s calling my name!” I made my voice high. “‘Oh, Jen-ni-fer! Come and get me-e-e!’” Kara cracked up—and for once she didn’t say anything about me giving up candy for Lent!

When I got home, I put the money I would have spent on candy into my bank. I always did that during Lent. Then after Easter I’d go to Nick’s and buy a chocolate feast!

I thought Kara was through bugging me, but on the way to school Monday, she started talking about the food bank again! “They feed lots of hungry people. Dad and I took bags of food to elderly people all over town. It’s sad how—“

Did she think I couldn’t tell what she was doing? “Kara,” I interrupted. “I told you I’m giving up candy for Lent.”

She rolled her eyes. “I know, I know! You always give up candy! I was just telling you about my weekend.”

“Yeah, right!” I cried. “You’re trying to pressure me again! I’m giving up candy, okay?”

“But you’re just doing it because it’s what you always do,” she said. “Like making the same lunch every day. And always doing your homework in the same order.”

“So I’m organized!” I said. “And efficient!”

“I’m just saying you should stop sometimes and think about what you’re doing. You might be able to improve yourself.”

Improve myself? How insulting was that? I stopped dead in my tracks and rubbed my chin. Then I said, “Okay. I stopped. I thought. And now I’m walking away!” I stomped off, leaving Kara to walk to school alone.

I couldn’t concentrate on my classes at all because I was so mad. I avoided Kara all day—I didn’t even eat lunch with her! By the time I headed home, I was really stressed.

I stopped and looked at Nick’s window display. There were some Nick’s Picks now, and I was tempted to buy some. I stood there a long time, fighting the temptation.

The thought hit me that this was why giving up candy was a good goal for me. It really was a tough sacrifice! By the time Lent was over each year, I truly appreciated candy.

Standing there, looking at all that chocolate, I realized something. Some people didn’t have enough real food to eat, but I had something extra that I could sacrifice and still have a great life!

Wow! I’m really lucky, I thought. Now that I stop and think about it...

That’s when I finally understood what Kara had been trying to tell me! Turning off the automatic pilot once in a while could really be a good thing. Like today I figured out something I never thought of before because I stopped and took a look at myself!

As I walked on home, I made a decision—a really thought-out decision. I was still going to give up candy—it actually was a good goal for me. But when Lent was over, I would give my candy savings to the food bank. That would make my Lenten sacrifice mean more.

Kara would like my idea, but before I told her about it, I had to apologize big-time! Kara was a good friend, and I realized I didn’t want to lose her.

Now that I stopped and thought about it!

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