One day, after speaking with his wife and children and receiving their concurrence, Lee gave his employer notice, as he said goodbye to his fellow employees and rented a Main Street storefront.
Withdrawing a sizable sum of his family savings, he hired an architect and a builder and remodeled that storefront to be the cutest in town, complete with blue and white flower boxes filled with flowers blooming in reds, pinks and golds.
Inside the store the builder installed ovens, refrigeration units and glass display units so everyone could see and smell all the goodies Lee would bake. In the corner was an old fashioned cash register to ring up all the sales.
And being such a kind man, Lee hired three very friendly and grateful senior citizens to wait on customers, three people no-one else would hire because of their old age.
When the store first opened, business was brisk because everyone in town liked Lee and wanted him to succeed. But there was a big problem. Lee was not a good baker and no matter how hard he tried, what he baked just didn't taste good.
Soon business fell off to nothing and Lee used what remained of the family savings to keep the bakery open. But it seemed Lee would have to shut the bakery.
"I'm so sorry," Lee told his family with tears in his eyes. "This bakery had long been my dream and in pursuit of that dream I jeopardized our financial security. In the morning I must close the bakery, layoff my employees and look for work as quickly as I can find it."
That night Lee didn't sleep, deeply troubled by what he had to do, the welfare of his three employees and his fear about what would happen to his family now that their money was gone.
But when the sun rose and Lee arrived at the bakery, it was packed with luscious donuts of every color and variety, as well as cakes, breads, cookies, cinnamon rolls, brownies, cupcakes and every other imaginable pastry. And the scent was heavenly and already attracting a long line of customers waiting for the doors to open.
How did this happen? Lee had no idea but he and his three employees spent the day selling everything in the store, as the cash register constantly rang. When Lee arrived home that night, he was exhausted but so filled with enthusiasm he couldn't stop talking about what had taken place, calling it "magic."
The next morning when Lee arrived, the bakery was again restocked with luscious treats and again it was soon jammed with customers. Business was so good, Lee would need to hire more employees. But how was this happening?
That night Lee slept in the bakery and in the wee hours of the morning, the doors burst open and a small army of elves arrived. As Lee sat there speechless, they smiled at him and then went into gear baking the most colorful and sweetest baked goods he had ever seen.
Before they finished, the head elf walked up to Lee and gave him a hug. And Lee responded by giving this elf a bear hug, as Lee kept uttering, "Thank you," as tears ran down his cheeks.
"We couldn't let you fail," the elf said to Lee with a smile. "You are such a good person who does so many wonderful things for the people of this community. And we believe that with your success, you will do even more wonderful things.
"But others elsewhere in the world need our help," the elf continued. "So over the next five nights we will keep baking, and we will teach you our baking skills..Then it will be up to you to hire bakers to assist you, as you replace us.
"Don't worry," the elf assured Lee. "You will succeed for you were already successful in life, as a husband, father and as a friend to all humanity before you ever opened this bakery."
And so it was. The bakery, rescued by magic, became an enormous success and served its community with delicious treats and with jobs, with charity donations and with Lee's boundless happiness and goodwill. For you see dear reader, the magic never stopped.
Dick
No comments:
Post a Comment