My friend Katie, dealing with a very ill husband, and full time work, enlists a cadre of caregivers. (I wrote about this in an earlier blog). She pays these wonderful helpers in cash.
Well, last week Katie went to the ATM, withdrew $500.00 for caregivers' pay and put the cash in a special drawer from which she apportions funds into envelopes for each employee. But this time she was extra tired so she headed straight to bed, leaving the wad in her pants pocket and the pants in the laundry pile.
In the morning before another shift, into the wash went the whole pile of laundry. After transferring everything from washer to dryer, Kate left for work asking the caregiver to pick up the laundry, which was just across a breezeway from the apartment door.
Well, sometime between Katie's leaving and the picking up of dry items another apartment resident, Ken, came to do his own wash. Looking at the dryer of whirring items he noticed a bill or two tossing about. And, curious but thinking that the kids who hang around after school sometimes might come and be too tempted to leave this loot alone, he stopped the dryer to pull the bills out. One $20 bill, and another, and another, and ... until $500 worth were collected. The note he left said "will the owner of the clothes in this dryer please contact me".
When Katie arrived home she was given the note and went to Ken's apartment. Imagine her amazement when he presented her with the whole $500 of now-very clean money. And imagine his when she invited him for tea so he could meet Keith, see for himself how dearly the money was needed, and join the ranks of those whom this family calls its own.