The Little Black Book Of Blessings

He squinted his eyes in an attempt to figure out what the black object in front of him was. When the frantic looking man went tearing down the sidewalk, crashed into Mark, and kept running, something fell out of his pocket. If Mark’s glasses hadn’t been knocked clear off his face he’d already have been able to identify the object in front of him. As it is, he was fumbling around feeling for them and hoping they weren’t broken.

Mark and his mom didn’t have a whole lot of money. Once his dad took off, Mom became so depressed she could barely go to work. So Mark took an after school job at the fast-food place downtown to help make ends meet. He was so tired from work, he hadn’t heard the man behind him until it was too late. And by the time Mark brushed himself off and picked himself up, there wasn’t a soul anywhere near him.

After a few minutes of frantically crawling around on the sidewalk, Mark’s hand landed on something cold and wet, but made of plastic and glass. To his relief, it was his glasses and they were still intact. He rubbed them off the best he could and put them back on his face. It wasn’t perfect, because the lenses had gotten dirty, but it was better than nothing.

Mark turned around and scanned the sidewalk for the black object. A closer look revealed that the black object was a small notebook. He scooped it up, slipped it into his pocket and headed home.

Sitting in the kitchen of their tiny rowhouse, Mark took a closer look at the book. It was thin, probably no thicker than a cigarette box. Scrawled across it were simply the words “Little Black Book.”

Curiosity getting the better of him, Mark flipped the notebook open. As he thumbed through the pages all he saw were locations around town and seemingly random numbers. But what did it all mean?

Mark pondered this until his tired, weary mother got home. He quickly hid the notebook in his pocket and he and mom settled in for dinner and an evening in front of the TV.

The next day, Mark was off from the fast- food restaurant he worked at. So when school was over, rather than going home to an empty house, he went to his favorite coffee shop.

Most kids in his high school thought coffee was gross, but Mark liked it. He liked how the sugar and caffeine buzz from a good cup of coffee got his brain working on overdrive. So while he sipped his drink, he retrieved the little black book, which he’d slipped in his backpack that morning.

Studying the first page, he racked his brain trying to figure out what these locations and numbers represented. They were mostly local landmarks, but some of them were businesses. But he couldn’t understand what the numbers had to do with each location.

Shrugging his shoulders, Mark threw out his empty coffee cup and headed out to do some investigating.

The first location listed was the public library. It wasn’t a place Mark went to a lot. Though he liked to read, it wasn’t cool to be seen hanging out at the library when you could be somewhere else. So Mark tended to avoid it. But today he felt a pull towards the place.

Once inside, he looked at the number listed next to the library’s name. He then glanced around, trying to ascertain what one had to do with the other. Wandering through the aisles, he noticed each one listed the call numbers of the books in that aisle. The number in the notebook was 201, so Mark went searching for it. As he was flipping through books he came across a small white envelope.

Mark opened the envelope and removed the single piece of paper in it. He unfolded the paper and read the message.

“Congratulations! You are on your way to a better life. If you are reading this, you must have the Little Black Book of Blessings. Turn it to page two.”

Mark did as the note instructed. This time, it said “Paradise Park.” Paradise Park was about half a mile from the library. When Mark was little, Mom and Dad used to take him there and he and Dad would play catch. Now that his Dad had left them, the memories made him sad, so he made it a point to avoid ever going to that park. But now he would go.

Hoping he wouldn’t run into anyone at school, Mark pulled his baseball cap down further over his eyes. He walked past screaming kids and tired parents, and circled the park. This time he was looking for the number 3. But he couldn’t figure out what a number would have to do with a park.

Scanning the grounds, his eyes landed on some rundown buildings located behind the jungle gym. As he crossed the length of the park, he noticed a sign that hadn’t been there when he was a kid. The sign was a park directory.

“Women’s Bathroom - Building 1”

“Men’s Bathroom - Building 2”

“Family Bathroom - Building 3”

Puzzled, Mark found building 3 and pushed the heavy door open. He looked around at the small bathroom until his eyes landed on a counter lined with sinks. Next to the sinks was a stack of brown paper towels. Sticking out from under them he saw the corner of a white piece of paper.

Mark carefully picked the stack up, grabbed the paper, and deposited the stack of paper towels back on the counter. He unfolded the piece of paper in his hands.

“A day in the park will keep you active. But a trip to Bob’s Books will keep your mind active. Go to the store and ask Bob for this month’s book reccomendation.”

Mark scratched his head in confusion. Bob Harper was the old curmudgeon that ran the local bookstore. According to Mark’s mom, the store had been there since she was younger than he is now. And in all those years, Bob never came across as a cheerful person. Though Mark didn’t shop at the store, he’d heard that Bob was grumpy but lovable. Mark couldn’t figure out how Bob’s Books factored into the Little Black Book of Blessings.

But he hadn’t come this far, only to give up now. So he grudgingly made his way over to Bob’s Books. Now it occured to him that he wished he’d rode his bike to school this morning. It would make getting there a lot faster. But he was much closer to Bob’s Books than he was to home.

With a sigh, Mark ambled down the street in the direction of the store.

When he entered, he looked around and saw the old man hunched over the counter, filling out some paperwork. Mark approached the counter and cleared his throat.”

Bob looked up from his paperwork.

“What can I do for you, sonny?” Bob asked gruffly.

“Um, can you tell me what the book of the month is?”

Surprisingly, Bob broke out in a toothy gin and nodded his head.

“I always enjoy seeing young people interested in the classics. It’s right over there.” Bob said, pointing to a display. Mark looked to where he was pointing.

“20,000 Leagues Under The Sea? That’s a really old book.” Mark exclaimed.

“An oldie but goodie. For $5, it's yours.”

Perplexed, Mark took $5 from his wallet and handed it to Bob, who bagged the book and slipped a receipt in.

“Happy reading, kid. Trust me, it’ll pay off.”

Mark left the store more confused than when he went in. A glance at his watch told him Mom would be home soon. He needed to beat her there.

After dinner that night, Mark’s mom settled in with her sewing. Mark excused himself and went to his room. He took the book out of its bag and looked at the cover. Though he liked to read, this looked like a book his English teacher would assign.

Yet something compelled Mark to read the book anyway. He was a fast reader, but it still took him nearly a week to finish it.

The night he finally did, his eyes were growing heavy as he turned to the last page. As he was reading the last paragraph of the last page he felt a lump under the page. When he flipped it over, there was a small white note with a message on it. Mark’s eyes widened as he read it. All of a sudden, he was wide awake.

“Congratulations! Your life is about to change. Bring this note, along with a parent or guardian if you are a minor, to Jackie’s Check Cashing Palace. You will be greatly rewarded for doing so.”

Mark glanced at the clock. It was only 10:30 at night, but he knew Mom would be sound asleep. He’d have to show her this in the morning.

After a night of tossing and turning, Mark’s alarm went off for school. He jumped out of bed, grabbed the note, and ran downstairs to show it to his mom.

An hour later they were standing outside the check-cashing place, weary but optimistic. Mark took the lead and practically ripped the door open. He burst into the store with his mom on his heels. Nervously, Mark’s mom presented the note to the clerk, whose nametag said “Donna.”

Donna looked at the note, looked at Mark and his mom, and excused herself. Through the glass window, they were able to see her talking to an older man. A few minutes later they both emerged from the office.

“Hello, I’m Jackie Orton. And you are?”

“My name is Mark and this is my mom, Sabrina Porter.”

“Nice to meet you, Mark and Sabrina. Tell me, how did you find this note?”

Mark told him the whole story while his mom looked on. He couldn’t read her expression, but he felt her tense up next to him as the story unfolded. When Mark was done telling his story, Mr. Orton excused himself again.

“We will talk about this at home young man. I don’t like you wandering around town alone.” his mom glared at him.

Mark opened his mouth to reassure her he was fine, when Mr. Orton came back out, with a long envelope in his hand.

“Ms. Porter, may I see your photo ID?”

Mark’s mom handed Mr. Orton her ID. He looked at it, looked at her, and gave it back.

“Ms. Porter, you’ve raised quite an inquisitive son. I was hoping this would go to a young, curious youth. And now I can see that it will.

With that, Jackie handed Sabrina the envelope. She opened it and took out its contents.

Mark and Sabrina were stunned into silence at what they saw. In her hand, Sabrina was holding a check with her name on it.

The check was for $20,000.

Looking at each other, Mark and Sabrina both started crying happy years. They’d been struggling since Mark’s dad left. But there would be no struggling anymore.