SERENA'S BIG PROBLEM

SERENA’S BIG PROBLEM



         Serena was a very nice girl who had a big problem.  She didn’t know how to tell the truth.  She lied about everything.

         Serena had two brothers, one older, one younger.

         Her older brother, David, was 13, and liked video games.  Her younger brother, Jason, was eight, and liked all outdoor sports.

         Serena liked to be with her friends, and spend the night at Grandma’s, and go to church on Sunday.

         When she was at Grandma’s, they would do things together, and Serena would tell Grandma all about what happened during the week.

         Serena watched Grandma make cookies.  “Jason was mean.  He hid my dollhouse in his closet.”

         “Why did he do that?”

         “I don’t know, because he was mean.”

         “What did you do to Jason?”

         “Nothing.”

         “Nothing?  Jason wouldn’t have hid your dollhouse for no reason.”

         “Well he did.  I came home from school yesterday and I couldn’t find it anywhere.”

         “I think you need to remember what you did.”

         “Nothing!  He was just being mean.  He’s always mean.”

         “Jason is a very nice boy, and you are a very nice girl.  You two just have to learn how to get along.”

         “Well if he would leave my things alone.”

         “Do you leave his things alone?”

         Serena was quiet while she watched Grandma put cookie dough on a cookie sheet.  “Can I put it in the oven?  I help mom make cookies.”

         “Now Serena, I know that your mother has said you can start helping her next year when you are a little older.”

         “Older, always older.  My friends get to do things I can’t.”  Serena pouted as she watched Grandma open the oven door and put the cookies inside.

         “Tell you what you can do.  You can set the timer on the microwave for 15 minutes.”

         Serena set the timer and went into the living room to watch television.

         “I thought you might want to put the dough on the next cookie sheet,” Grandma said.

         Serena bounced back into the kitchen.  “Can I have the bowl when it’s done?”

         “Yes, you can have the bowl.  Now tell me why Jason would put your dollhouse in his closet.  And remember that when you tell the truth two people benefit from it.”

         “What two people?”

         “You go to church with me every week.  Who do you think likes it when you tell the truth?”

         “God?”

         “Yes.  God is one.  Who’s the other?”

         “You?”

         “I like it when you tell the truth, but it’s not me.  It’s someone else.  Can you guess who?”

         Serena thought as she watched the time count down on the microwave.  “Mom?”

         “Your mother also likes it when you tell the truth, and you aren’t grounded when you do.  But it’s not your mother.”

         Serena counted down the timer.  “10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.”

         The microwave beeped and Serena watched as Grandma took the first pan of cookies out of the oven, and set them on the counter, then put the next pan of cookies in the oven that Serena had helped with.

         “Have you thought about who else is happy when you tell the truth?” Grandma said.

         Serena watched as Grandma put the cookies on the cooling rack.  “I don’t know who.  Can I have a cookie?”

         “I’ll tell you what.  When you can tell me who else is happy when you tell the truth, you can have a cookie.”

         “That’s not fair!  I don’t know who.”  Serena stamped her foot on the floor, crossed her arms across her chest, and had a stubborn look on her face.

         “If you can’t tell me who else is happy when you tell the truth, then you won’t be able to have a cookie.”

         Serena knew the cookies were for church the next day.  She would just wait until then and get a cookie.  Until then she would try another tactic as she put a spoonful of dough on the cookie sheet.  “I got an A in math yesterday.”

         “Did you?  That’s very good.  I know that you like math.”

         “So if I got an A in math, can I have a cookie?”

         “Do you have your math homework with you so I can see it?”

         Serena had thought she could trick Grandma.  “No.  It’s at home.”

         “So you thought that if you told me without showing me that I would give you a cookie?”

         “I don’t know who else is happy when I tell the truth.”  Then Serena had a thought.  “Would it be Jason?”

         “Jason would be happy, yes.  And he might even stop being mean to you, but he’s not the one who is happy when you tell the truth.”

         “It’s not you.  It’s not mom.  It’s not Jason.  It wouldn’t be David.”

         “No.  It wouldn’t be David.”

         “Would it be dad?”

         “Are you guessing now?”

         “I don’t know who you are talking about.  Besides I do tell the truth.”

         “Do you?  So why did Jason hide your dollhouse?”

         “Because he wanted to.  I don’t know.”  Serena added the last spoon of dough to the cookie sheet, and waited for the timer to count down so Grandma could take the other pan out of the oven.  “Now I get the bowl.”

         “I think it can wait for a moment.”

         “But you said!”

         “Yes, I did, and you can have it.  But first I want you to think real hard about why Jason would hide your dollhouse in the closet.”

         “He came in my room before school yesterday and took my earrings off the dresser.”

         “Why would he do that?”

         “I don’t know.  I went into his room and tried to get my earrings back and he hit me.”

         “Now, I’m sure that you didn’t just let him hit you.”

         “Well, no.  I hit him back.”

         “Okay.  You hit him too.  And did you get your earrings back?”

         “I had to pry them out of his hand.”

         “So you got them back.  What else did you do?”

         Serena thought about yesterday morning.  “There was shouting and hitting.”

         “You shouted and hit him too?”

         “Yes.  But he took my earrings.”

         “Okay.  He took your earrings, and you followed him into his room, and you got into a big fight, and what happened?  Did he follow you back into your room?”

         “No.  Mom stopped it.  He just grinned and went back to his room.”

         “Okay.  Something else happened that started that series of events.”

         “I got up.  I took my shower, and when I got back to my room he was there.”

         “What was he doing?”

         “I don’t know.  I told him to get out.”

         “He had to be there for a reason.”

         “Well, I don’t know what it was.  Please Grandma, can I have a cookie?”

         “First tell me what the fight was about.  Why would Jason take your earrings, and hide your dollhouse in his closet?”

         The microwave beeped on the last batch of cookies, Grandma grabbed a hot pad, and took them out.

         Serena watched carefully.  She wanted a cookie, and she meant to have one.

         “You just wait until you tell me why,” Grandma said, with her head still turned toward the oven.

         Serena pulled her hand back.  “I wasn’t doing anything.”

         “You were about to take a cookie when I had my back turned.”

         Serena was quiet as she watched Grandma place the cookies on the cooling rack.  “Well he started it.  He was in my room.”

         “Why?  What did he want?”

         “I don’t know.  His dumb ruler was in my room.”

         “So.  How did his ruler get in your room?”

         “I used it.”

         “So you used it on Thursday night for your homework?”

         “I couldn’t find mine.  So I used his.”

         “Did you ask him if you could use it?”

         “He was outside playing basketball.  So I took it.”

         “And he was in your room to get it back, so he could get ready for school.”

         Serena was quiet for a moment.  “You always take his side.”

         “Serena.  Think about it for a moment.  Why would I take his side?”

         “Because you always do.  You never believe me about anything.”

         “If you would tell the truth, Serena, there would be no problem.  What did you do when you found him there?”

         “I gave him his dumb old ruler, and he took my earrings.”

         “Did you give it to him nicely, or did you throw it at him?”

         Serena crossed her arms, and had a stubborn look on her face.  She stamped her foot, and headed into the living room.  “You don’t understand!”

         Grandma followed her into the living room.  “What don’t I understand?”

         “He was in my room!”

         “And you went into his room the night before.”

         “He took my earrings, and hid my dollhouse in his closet!”

         “You threw his ruler at him instead of handing it to him.  Serena think about what happened and why.”

         “He took my earrings and my dollhouse.”

         “Yes he did, and what did you do?  What is the truth, Serena?”

         Serena stared at the television as tears streamed down her face.  “I needed the ruler to do my schoolwork!”

         “What did you do, Serena?”

         Serena grabbed a tissue, and wiped her eyes.  In a low voice she said, “I took his ruler without asking.”

         “Yes you did.  And is that why Jason hid your dollhouse?”

         Serena hung her head, and wouldn’t look at the television or Grandma, but only nodded her head.

         “Okay.  So he took your earrings and hid your dollhouse because you took something of his without asking, and you didn’t give it back to him without a fight.”

         Again Serena nodded her head without looking up.  The tears streamed down her cheeks and her shoulders shook with the force of her emotions.

         “Okay.  That’s the truth.  Now what are you going to do about it?”

         Serena looked at Grandma, and rubbed at her eyes.  “Say I’m sorry?”

         “Will you mean it?  I think the first person you should say you’re sorry to is God.  Don’t you think so too?”

         Serena looked at Grandma.  “I didn’t lie.”

         “You didn’t tell all the truth, either, which is the same thing.  So what do you need to do?”

         “Say I’m sorry to God and Jason?”

         “And how do you do that?”

         “Pray and ask God to forgive me for not telling all the truth?”

         “That’s right.”

         Serena bowed her head.  “Dear God.  I’m sorry I didn’t tell all the truth.  Help me to tell all the truth from now on.  In Jesus name, amen.”

         Serena felt a lot better, and a smile appeared on her face as she looked up at Grandma.

         “So.  Do you know who else is happy when you tell the truth?”

         “Me,” Serena said.

         “Yes you.  Now you can have the bowl, and a cookie.  Then we can watch TV together.  What do you want to watch?”

         Serena went into the kitchen to get a cookie, the bowl, and spoon, and then returned to the living room a smile on her face.  It did feel good to tell the truth.