Mrs. Mawakasunga was rushing to finish preparations for dinner.  Uncle Floyd and Mrs. Potato Head are coming over for dinner and then to see photos! 

“Elizabeth, could you please finish your chores!  You did not empty all the trash cans around the house yet.  Then you must wash your hands and set the table!”

Mr. Mawakasunga had just finished mowing the grass and was now in the shower.  Soon, everything was in order, and Elizabeth had even picked these pretty flowers for the table.!

Oh! I forgot to tell you!  Mr. and Mrs. Mawakasunga got home from their trip to Tanzania this past week!  Aunt Gertrude went back home so now things are back to normal in the Mawakasunga household!  Elizabeth is very happy that her mommy and daddy are back home! 

The doorbell rang and Elizabeth watched as her father opened the door. 

“I reckon it is mighty good to see you again!” said Uncle Floyd as he hugged Mr. Mawakasunga.  And then Elizabeth’s daddy hugged Mrs. Potato Head too!  And then Uncle Floyd hugged Mrs. Potato Head and then Elizabeth’s mommy came in and the hugs started all over again!  Elizabeth smiled as she watched.

As they took their places at the dinner table Mr. Mawakasunga noticed that Mrs. Potato Head’s shoe was untied.  And he meant to say something, but Uncle Floyd was in the middle of telling a funny story about the SCS picnic when Elizabeth and Aunt Gertrude rode on the Comet Roller Coaster ride at Hershey Park and how Aunt Gertrude screamed the whole way!  And then he forgot about the shoelace.  He really meant to help her, he just forgot . . . .  You see, an untied shoe lace may be nothing to you or me, but to an old potato it could mean a dangerous fall.  Old potatoes are very breakable.  Mr. Mawakasunga KNOWS this, he just . . . forgot.

And so, when dinner was over and they were about to go to the back porch, Elizabeth happened to see that Mrs. Potato Head’s shoe lace was now caught around the leg of her chair and she was just ready to stand up!

“OH!” shouted Elizabeth.  And she dove under the table to free the shoelace.  It was just in the nick of time, because surely Mrs. Potato Head would have fallen and broken her arm . . . possibly worse!

“Thank you sweetie!” said Mrs. Potato Head, a bit embarrassed that she had been so careless. 

A shoelace is such a small problem, and noticing that it is untied is a small thing.  But small things left undone CAN turn to BIG problems. 

Silently, Mr. Mawakasunga knew this.  He felt bad that he had ignored the untied shoelace.  In fact, he was silently ashamed of himself. 

There are many times that we are like Mr. Mawakasunga.  We just forget to do the SMALL helpful things.  In fact, there are times we forget to do the BIG helpful things.  And we are silently ashamed.

When Jesus was having dinner with his friends, he explained to them how His forgiveness is there for us.  We should always to do the good and helpful deed, but when we forget, Jesus forgives us. 

Sometimes we are like Mr. Mawakasunga, but Jesus hopes that more often than not, you are like Elizabeth and you remember to do the loving deed! 

THE END

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