MIND YOUR OWN BEESWAX

'Whatever you are doing, stop it now!' the decrepit, yellow-skinned lady says. Her crippled finger shakes at a small boy who couldn't be much more than five years old. 'Not doin' nothin', Lady,' the frightened black boy replies. 'Oh, yes you are. I saw you picking your nose. That's ugly. Do you want your nose to fall off?' 'No, Ma'am,' 'Then stop it and go wash your hands before you eat what's in that bag.' He jiggles the bag and says, ' I'm not going to eat what's in here, Lady. You can if you want to. I have some live earth worms in here. My friend, Billy and I are going to pretend we are butchers and are going to cut them into little pieces. Billy's mother gave us two red plastic forks so we don't cut ourselves.'
 

'I knew it. I knew it, Child, as soon as I saw you all by yourself, no mother, no father, nobody, standing on the street corner picking your nose and putting that finger in your mouth. You must be an orphan,' 'What's an orphan?' 'My, Lord, you don't know much do you?' 'I do so. My mother told me I'm very smart for five. I can count to twenty and know the whole alphabet. Want to hear me say it?' 'No, I don't. I know the alphabet already.'

'Now stop that squirming. You look like you have to go to the toilet. Stand still.' 'I do, Lady. Go away. I'm going home to wait for Billy.'
He turns away and starts to run down the street. 'Hey, Boy, stop that running. You might fall down. Walk and I'll walk you home.' 'No, I don't want to walk. Get away from me. You look like a witch.' 'Now, you apologize. That isn't a nice thing to say.' Instead he calls her a witch again. This time she grabs him by the back of his shirt. 'You nasty, nasty boy. Just for that I will use my witch power. You will never be able to fly.' She makes a wild motion in the air and shouts, 'Kazaam, Kazoo. Lord, never, never let this boy get wings. Don't let him fly.'
The boy starts to cry big runny tears. She takes his hand, not the hand with the nose picking finger, and he walks slowly with her to the corner. 'Want to go in with me? I'm going to have a chocolate nut sundae and you can have some. His deep brown eyes dry quickly and twinkle. 'Yes, Ma am, I'd like some ice cream.'

'Your mother doesn't teach you anything at all. Does she?' 'She does so. She's always telling me what to do and what not to do.' 'Then how come she didn't teach you not to go with strangers.' 'She did so teach me that but I am not going anywhere with you. I'm just going to have some of your ice cream, that's all.' 'You are dumb, Kid, I could steal you away and you would never see your mother and father again, not even Billy...but I won't.

She orders 2 chocolate nut sundaes, eats most of hers fast, puts three dollars on the counter, taps the little boy on his shoulder, smiles
and says,

'Goodbye, have a nice day, Little One. I did.'

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Feeling the pinch at the grocery store? Make dinner for $10 or less.