Missing!

As the students entered the classroom, they could all tell something was wrong. Their teacher was crying. Paige Thomson was the first to ask if there was anything they could do.

“Everything is fine, Paige,” Mrs. Williams tried to smile as she spoke. “I’ve just lost something that was very important to me, and I don’t think I will be able to find it.”

“What did you lose?” Clint Holloway asked. “Maybe we can help you look for it.”

Mrs. Williams looked at their sincere faces and finally answered. “Well, I left an old newspaper on the corner of my desk. The newspaper belonged to my grandmother. The headline was about the assassination of President Kennedy. I had hoped to share the paper with you today in history class. The paper is old, but it is also special because I can remember my grandmother telling me the story of what all happened on that day. She gave me the newspaper before she died, so it is something I have that belonged to her. When I came back from lunch, the newspaper was gone.”

The other students looked at each other, wondering if one of them had taken the paper and hoping that no one would do something like that to the teacher. Everyone liked Mrs. Williams. No one in the room could imagine anyone wanting to upset her.

Trevor Simpkins spoke up for the entire class. “We’ll help you look, Mrs. Williams. If we all work together, we’re bound to find it.”

Mrs. Williams smiled at the group of students. She knew they might not find the missing paper, but even if they didn’t, she knew she should still feel very lucky. She had a group of students who genuinely cared about her and each other, and that was probably the best thing she could ever hope to find!