The Challenge by Rebecca Sandler

Mrs. Bertram loved her son, but she worried about him. He was always losing things, and he did not take care of his toys or clothes. She wanted him to be more careful. She wanted him to be responsible.

She was reading a book one morning, or at least she was trying to. It was not easy to do so because Robert was in the hall playing with his drum. Suddenly the drumming stopped and Robert rushed into the room crying.

"I broke it! I broke it," he sobbed.
"Your drum?” asked his mother. “How did you do that?"
"I was beating it withthe knives and--"
"With the knives!" exclaimed his mother. "Where were your drumsticks?"
"I--I--don't know," sobbed Roger.

"Have you lost them?" said Mrs. Bertram. She needed no words to know the answer. Robert's manner was quite enough. "You know, Robert, what I said would happen the next time you lost anything."

"Yes," said Robert, "You said I must give away all my toys to some little boys who would
know how to take care of them."

"Yes," said his mother. "I see you remember. I will send them all to the children's hospital
tonight."

"But, mama," said Robert, "if I don't have any toys to take care of, how can I learn to take care
of them?"

Mrs. Bertram had to turn away so that Robert would not see her smile. "I will have to think of some other way to teach you to be careful. I will think of something, and I will tell you what to do
tonight."

That night, she told him, "I have decided that there is another way you can show how careful
you are. I want you to do the laundry every week for two months.”

Robert looked astonished. "Boys don't wash clothes," he said.

"Sometimes," said his mother, smilingly. "Now if you do this every day for two months, I will
know you have become more responsible. Being careful is part of growing up. It means you are
responsible, an it means people can trust you. This is a challenge. It is something to do that is not
easy. It will help everyone in the family."

The next week Robert began his work. At first, he disliked it very much. But after a while he changed his mind. He wanted to show his mother he was responsible. He not only washed the clothes,
but he also folded them neatly. He kept his toys in a box where he could find them. He was careful
with everything.

The day when his two months would be up was Christmas Day. Imagine Roger's delight when
he saw he had a new coat, a video game and a new drum and drumsticks. On them was a note: "For
Robert, who is very responsible." He felt proud.