Fifty

At the age of ten every cousin on my Dad’s side spent a week with our grandparents in Florida. This was a big BIG deal. You got to ride the plane by yourself and then spend a week with Grandma and Grandpa doing all the Florida stuff like Disney land and Universal studios. At the beginning of the trip my dad came over to me and reached into his pocket and pulled out a 50 dollar bill “Now this fifty dollars is yours to spend however you like while you’re in Florida with Grandpa and Grandma. So bring back some nice souvenirs” Now to my ten-year-old self 50 bucks was an insurmountable amount of money. It was a sum of cash that couldn’t be spent in a lifetime. I was overjoyed and vowed not to waste it.

When I got to Florida I had a great time. I got to go to Disney land and do all the things I hadn’t done before. Though, I was still a little too scared to go on Space Mountain. I didn’t get to meet Mickey, though we tried very hard. And all the while, in the back of my head was the fifty. Every souvenir stand I passed I scorned, “What would I do with that after I brought home?” I kept asking myself.

Eventually, the trip neared its end and still intact was my fifty dollar bill. My grandpa, grandma and I were visiting somewhere I don’t remember and my grandma stopped to go to the bathroom. Outside the women’s restroom there was a classy souvenir shop with golf umbrellas for sale.

“Why don’t you get your father a golf umbrella with some of the money he gave you?” my grandfather asked.

I scrounged my head on this one. It seemed like a nice thing to do but I couldn’t figure out what the difference was between a golf umbrella and a regular one. So why get one when we have at 5 at home?

“I just don’t see the point, what would he do with it?”

My grandfather is the kindest and most polite man I have ever known. He’s soft spoken, intelligent and a true gentleman, especially when it comes to my grandmother. He avoids confrontation and chuckles often in conversation to prevent awkward gaps.

“You know what, that’s selfish. Your father gave you fifty dollars and you won’t even spend ten of it on him, absolutely selfish.”

I was in shock. I had never heard this man be angry about anything and here he was angry at me. He didn't raise his voice or act like I was in trouble he just let it be known I was complete disappointment to him at that point in time. The disdain and disgust in his voice is something I won't ever forget.

“But I don’t get why…”

“There’s no excuse. This is absolutely greedy and I can’t believe you.”

At this moment my grandmother returned. I was in tears but hid my face so she wouldn’t notice. My grandfather said nothing and continued to have a stern expression about him for the rest of the day. We never said anything about it again and I’ve never seen my grandfather angry since then and I hope I never ever do.

When I returned from Florida my dad asked me what souvenirs I’d bought and I told him I didn’t get any.

“What? None? Well ok.” And he took his fifty back.