Art Lover

A father tries to teach his son to appreciate art.

“You aren’t listening. Son, did you hear me?”

Luke looked up from his phone. “What did you say, Dad?”

Fred sighed and pointed at a painting. “I said you need to develop an appreciation for art. I didn’t bring you here so you could spend the whole day texting. Just look at this Monet. Do you know what it’s appraised value is now? Twenty million dollars.”

Luke shrugged. “So I should appreciate it because it’s worth a lot?”

“No. You should appreciate it for its beauty.”

They continued through the museum’s grand halls. Fred admired every masterpiece while sixteen-year-old Luke seemed interested only in his phone. By the end of the tour, Fred was convinced the trip had been a complete failure.

The next morning, Luke stepped out of the hotel bathroom, steam trailing behind him. Fred sat on the edge of the bed watching a breaking news report.

“Luke, look at this!”

The teenager glanced at the television.

The screen showed flashing police lights outside the museum they had visited the day before.

“The Monet I pointed out to you has been stolen,” Fred said.

Luke raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

“Yeah. And you know something strange?” Fred muted the television. “We’ve been traveling across Europe for six months, and I think art has been stolen from every museum we’ve visited.”

For the first time, Luke looked genuinely interested.

Fred stared at him. “That is weird, isn’t it?”

“Very weird.”

Luke’s phone vibrated.

He glanced down and smiled.

A message filled the screen.

PAYMENT RECEIVED.

Fred’s eyes narrowed.

“Who keeps texting you?”

Luke slipped the phone into his pocket.

“Just someone who appreciates art, Dad.”