Coloured Matches

As she walked down the street, Laura mulled over her predicament.

She was upset because she wanted a new dress she had seen in a store and could not afford it.

She asked her mother, then insisted and begged, but the answer had always been the same:

- No, honey. We do not have money now. Maybe another time?

The girl stamped her foot, demanding:

- No! I want it now! Later, that dress will not be in the store anymore. And it's beautiful, Mom. I want it, I want it and I want it!

- Well, you can’t have it, Laura. At the moment I have little money and I cannot spend what I have on your whim.

The girl cried, threw a tantrum, stamped her foot, and shouted non-conformed:

- But I want it!

However, despite all of Laura's pressure, her mother did not relent, staying strong. She talked to her father, thinking it would be easier. She approached him sweetly, as she always did when she wanted something, sat on his lap and asked in a pleading voice:

- Daddy, may I buy a dress I saw in a store? It's beautiful!

However, the answer was the same: No. 

Laura went to her room sulking, cried, but she had to resign herself because her parents would not change their minds.

A few days later, Laura woke up with a fever. Dona¹ Isabel, careful and worried, did not allow her daughter to go to school, forcing her to stay in bed.

As the fever did not subside, the mother took Laura to the doctor. She had onset pneumonia.

For more than a week, the girl stayed in bed, taking pills and complaining about not being able to leave the house and go to school.

- Will I get better soon, Mommy? - she asked. - June Festival² at school is fast approaching and I do not want to miss it!

- We will see. It's up to you, honey. If you take your medicine as you’re supposed to, stay in bed, who knows?

That week took forever to end. Laura, though unconvinced, had to obey. To pass the time, she played checkers with friends, watched tv, and when she was alone she read a lot.

She, who had never been much interested in reading, read books that talked about things that are really important in our life and that we should value, such as family, health and education.

At the same time, Laura could not help noticing that her parents were spending a lot of money on her: they had to pay for the doctor's appointments, buy medicine, and even healthier food so she could get better.

Concerned, she asked her mother:

- Mom, you said you were broke and now you're having to spend so much on me! Where did you get the money?

- It’s because our health, darling, is very important to us and for that we will always find a way. It is different from buying a dress, which is not necessary and we can live without it.

A week later, the girl was different, calmer, more serene.

The day of the school's June Festival arrived.

Laura, now recovered, got ready and happily left their home so she could party with her friends and classmates.

There, walking among the illuminated poles, the decorated huts, the flags, she looked at her mother, while smiling and said:

- You know, Mom, I've learned a lot these days. I have learned that there are things that are really important. Like health, for example. I was angry that I could not buy the new dress I wanted so badly, but now I do not even remember it anymore!

Looking at a classmate who was playing with coloured matches, she explained:

- I learned that there are things in life that are like fireworks: after they burn, there is nothing left. They are beautiful, bright, colourful, but it's only for a moment. They do not last.

She stopped talking, looked at her mother with a loving and grateful look and added:

- But love lasts forever.

AUNT CÉLIA

¹ - In Brazilian society, Dona is a term of respect that is used with the woman’s first name.

² - Festa Junina also known as festa de São João for their part in celebrating the nativity of St. John the Baptist (June 24), are the annual Brazilian celebrations historically related to European Midsummer that take place in the beginning of the Brazilian winter. These festivities, which were introduced by the Portuguese during the colonial period (1500-1822), are celebrated during the month of June nationwide both in Brazil and Portugal. The feast is mainly celebrated on the eves of the Catholic solemnities of Saint Anthony, Saint John the Baptist, and Saint Peter. (source: Wikipedia)

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