These Are My JOTtings, Part #2

Excerpt: "Park Your Tricycle in a Safe Place"

With the wind in his face and with his legs pumping like he was churning butter, Matt zipped down the sidewalk, spun around the parking lot, and came to rest behind a car near the apartment where he and his family were living, during their New York sojourn.

I'm really thirsty. I know Momma can help me. Matt nodded to himself.

Gone maybe five minutes, Matt rushed back out to ride his tricycle some more in his own personal wonderland. As he stepped off the sidewalk toward his tricycle, he noticed that the car was gone. As eyes grew into saucers when he found his tricycle. It was completely flat. He couldn't ride it ever, again.

Churning legs had him next to his mother in a moment. "Come see! Come see!"

Mom hurried out the door with Matt, seeing the problem before he needed to explain it. "Oh. Matt. I'm so sorry. Your tricycle. It was your favorite toy, too."

"Whoever drove that car killed my tricycle."

"Matt, that person didn't exactly kill your tricycle, but it is pretty much destroyed."

"Are you going to get onto them when they get back?"

"I don't see how I can, Matt. The fault was yours. It is never smart to leave something that you value lying behind somebody else's car. If it's small, like your tricycle, they won't see it when they back out to leave."

"What are we going to do, Mom?" Matt asked.

"Matt, I'll talk it over with your Daddy." Mom said. "When we can work it into the budget, I'm sure we'll be able to buy you a new tricycle, but you must promise never to park it behind any other cars. Do you promise?"

"Yes, Ma'am. I promise."