Summary:  Have you ever wanted something so badly that you’d do anything to get it? Let’s just say Little Joe and his best friend Mitch find out the hard way that sometimes finders keepers end up being finders weepers. Contains reference to corporal punishment.

Rating:  K+ (4,485 words)

 

No Love Without Forgiveness, No Forgiveness without Love

Little Joe Cartwright stood with his best friend Mitch peering into the mercantile window. A new shipment of knives had just arrived and the two 8 year old boys couldn’t take their eyes off of them.
Little Joe read aloud the advertising slogan, “The Barlow Pocket Knife – the toughest knife you’ll ever own. Get yours today for only $0.50.”

“Boy, think of the things we could do with one of those,” Mitch said. “But who am I kidding; I only have 3 cents saved up at home.”

Joe chuckled. “That’s two more cents than I have, Mitch.”

Just then Joe’s father, Ben Cartwright, exited from the mercantile with an armload of bundles. He motioned for the boys to get into the wagon. Joe and Mitch begrudgingly complied.
Joe waited for everyone to get settled and then decided to casually start a conversation.

“So, Pa, did you see those new knives on display at the mercantile?” Joe asked.

Ben knew right away the boy’s intentions and decided to play along.

“No, son, I didn’t. Why do you ask?”

Joe gave Mitch the eye and then continued. “No reason. I was just thinking of all the things a fellow could do with one of them.”

Joe glanced up to read his father’s expression. Ben’s face deliberately showed none.

“Oh, I see. What sort of things do you think a fellow your age could do with one them?”

Joe hesitated. He hadn’t prepared his defense.

Mitch piped up quickly, “Whittle for one.”

He then bumped his shoulder into Joe encouraging him to piggyback on the idea.

“Yeah, and a … with it… a … fittin’ in your pocket and all… you could take it anywhere. That way… um … you’d have it whenever you needed it.”

Joe could tell that his reasons were weak and shot Mitch a sorrowful glance. Mitch just rolled his eyes, but he knew deep down that he couldn’t have done any better.

It was all Ben Cartwright could do to hide a smirk from his face. Silence fell upon the wagon for some time before he opted to respond to his son’s statement.

“Well, I guess if it’s something you really want and can use…”

Joe perked up at his father’s opening comment. Could it be that his little plan had worked? He silently finished his father’s statement in his mind. “We’ll have to see about getting you one.”

His father’s voice outweighed his thoughts, however. “Then I guess we’ll have to see about giving you some extra chores so you can earn the money to buy one. That is… if it’s that important to you, son.”

That took the wind right out of Joe’s sails. He knew what extra chores meant around the ranch and that suddenly made the importance of owning a Barlow Pocket Knife fade drastically.

“Thanks Pa, but I’ll have to think on it.”

Mitch muffled a snicker and Joe gave him the “Well, at least I tried” look.

Ben brought the team to a halt at the entrance to Mitch’s farm. Mitch leaned into Joe before dismounting.

“We’ll talk about it tomorrow, okay?”

He then turned to Ben and thanked him for the ride home. Joe yelled out to his friend as the wagon lurched forward,

“See you tomorrow, Mitch!”

 

The next day, the two boys sat silently eating their lunch under the big pine tree in the schoolyard. They had resigned themselves to knowing that their dreams of owning a pocketknife came down to two factors: waiting until their birthdays, which were months away, or taking on extra chores to earn it for themselves. Next to just walking into the mercantile and stealing it, there were no other solutions to be had. Therefore, they took the easy way out.

“Who’d want a dumb old knife like that anyway?” Mitch said to his friend.

Joe agreed. “Yeah, the blade would probably rust and the handle would crack anyhow.”

And, so ended their conversation.

 

That afternoon, as the children entered from lunch, they found a tall, slender man sitting in the chair next to the teacher’s desk. Ms. Jones clapped her hands together twice to bring the class to order.

“Class, I would like you to meet Mr. Waters from the Virginia City Orphanage. He is here to collect your donations today and speak with you… Mr. Waters.”

The students had put together a fund raiser to help the orphanage. They had made posters and collected clothing and non perishables from around the area the past few months. Everything had been brought into the school and Mr. Waters had come with a wagon to collect what was being donated. He stood in front of the class, cleared his throat, and began reciting his obviously prepared acceptance speech.

“On behalf of the children at the Virginia City Orphanage, we would like to thank you children, and your families, for your generosity. You have provided us with food and clothing as well as financial support. Your efforts are greatly appreciated.”

The children escorted Mr. Waters out to the wagon to say their goodbyes. He was about to pull away when one of the students, Oliver, came hastily up to Ms. Jones.

“Ms. Jones, Ms. Jones, we forgot our donation!”

“Oh, for goodness sake, that’s right! Oliver, will you please go inside and get it for us?”

Ms. Jones had placed a canister on her desk where the children could make their own contributions. Parents had also added a few coins here and there to help boost the children’s grand total.

Oliver ran into the schoolhouse, grabbed the canister and flew back down the steps toward the waiting group. Just before he reached them, he tripped over his own two feet and the boy, the canister, and its contents spewed out all over the ground. The playground erupted in laughter.

“Well, we don’t call him clumsy Ollie for nothing,” Joe piped up.

Again there was laughter from the children. Ms. Jones shot him the sternest look.

“Joseph, you apologize this very instant.”

Joe responded with a simple, “Yes, Ma’am,” and complied. He then helped Oliver to his feet.

The children began picking up the coins on the ground. Everyone was moving around minding their own business and scanning the dirt intensely. Suddenly Mitch’s eyes fell on something shiny near the steps of the school. He walked over to find a dollar coin glistening in the spring sunlight. He was about to pick it up when an idea came to mind. Instead, he scanned the yard to see if anyone was watching and then placed his foot over the coin. There he stood. Watching and waiting … watching and waiting and making sure his act had gone unnoticed. A few moments later, Joe approached.

“Find anything?” he questioned.

Mitch nodded, “Yeah, here. Put this in for me will, ya?”

Joe took the coins over to Ms. Jones and then returned to stand next to his best friend. Mr. Waters gave one final thank you and rode away. The teacher then ushered the children back into the classroom.

Joe started to enter the school, but Mitch grabbed him by the arm and told him to wait. As soon as everyone was inside, he quickly lifted his foot, showed Joe the coin and proudly announced,

“Well, Joe. It looks like we’ll be getting those knives after all.”

He then quickly hopped up the stairs into the classroom. Joe stood there a moment stunned. He couldn’t believe what his friend had just done. He shook his head and slowly walked into the schoolhouse.

Afterschool, Joe’s brother Hoss was talking with some of his friends, so Joe wasted no time confronting Mitch on the issue.

“I can’t believe you stole that money, Mitch,” he said accusingly.

“I didn’t steal it, Joe. I found it.” Mitch retorted.

Joe frowned at his best friend and said, “But that’s not your money and you know it. You should return it to Ms. Jones right now.”

Mitch deep down knew his friend was right, but he really didn’t feel that he stole the money. He just happened upon it. He decided to try to reason with his friend.

“Listen Joe, did I actually take the money from the canister?”

Joe said, “No, but…”

Mitch interrupted, “Did I return the other money I found?”

Joe said, “Yes, but…”

“Does anyone know the money is missing?” Mitch continued.

“No, but…”

“Well, then I don’t think we have anything to worry about, do you?”

Joe pondered his friend’s thoughts and began arguing with his own conscience.

“Mitch is right. No one knows the money is gone and we’ll never be able to afford the knives ourselves. Yes, but it’s not ‘honest’ money as Pa would call it. That’s true, but we can’t consider it stolen money if no one knows it’s missing in the first place. Yeah, but think what Pa will do to your backside if he ever finds out. But how’s he ever gonna find out? … Boy, I sure could use that knife.”

Joe heaved a huge sigh and hesitantly said, “I guess it doesn’t really hurt anything.”

Mitch let out a laugh of relief and slapped his friend on the back.

“That a boy, Joe. Now all we have to do is find a way to buy them. When we get into town with your brother, make an excuse to leave us alone for a while. We can sneak down to the mercantile, buy the knives, and still be back before your father comes to pick us up, okay?”

Joe didn’t have time to respond because Hoss walked over to join the group.

“Come on fellas, we best get goin’ or Pa will be angry with us for being late.”

They headed for town.

The boys had been instructed to wait outside the mercantile. Ben had some business at the bank and then he’d be over to pick them up. As luck would have it, Hoss had been told that morning to walk over to the livery to pick up a broken harness that had recently been fixed. This gave Joe and Mitch just enough time for each to buy their knives.

That afternoon was a quiet one for both boys. There was no going back now on what they had done and the long ride home reeked havoc on their conscience. But, what was done was done and quickly forgotten. It wasn’t very long before all guilt faded, and the boys thoroughly were enjoying their newly acquired personal possessions … possessions that they could only share amongst themselves and not with any of their family members.

 

Life went on as usual the next few weeks. Well, almost as usual. Ben Cartwright had noticed a recent change in his son. Joe seemed to be on his best behavior, particularly at school. In fact, Joe hadn’t gotten into any mischief at all, which was a surprise to his family. The boy’s grades had been improving as well, probably due to the fact that he was spending more time paying attention to the instruction and less time thinking of ways to pull pranks on his classmates. To Joe, he was trying to live life on the straight and narrow. It was his subconscious way of justifying his actions from the past. To Ben, he felt the boy was making a better effort… an effort that should not go unnoticed. That evening after supper he motioned Little Joe over to his desk.

“Yeah, Pa,” Joe said cautiously. He then noticed that both his brothers had followed suit.

“Son,” Ben began. “We want you to know how proud we are of you.”

“Proud?” Joe questioned.

Hoss spoke next.

“Yah, little brother, you’ve been on your best behavior as of late.”

“You’ve been doing well with your schoolwork, too,” Adam joined in, “and I don’t think I’ve ever seen your grades this high. Well done, lad.”

He playfully slapped Joe on the back. Joe gave them all a sheepish grin. He hadn’t realized it, but they were right. He had been on his best behavior and he welcomed the praise. A few moments later, Ben suddenly reached into his desk and brought something out shielding it within his strong fisted hand.

He smiled broadly at his youngest son and said, “Joseph, we have a little gift for you that we think you’ll be mighty happy about.”

Joe watched in excitement as his father revealed the undisclosed item. For a brief moment, time stopped for the 8 year old.

Joseph couldn’t believe his eyes. There in his father’s hand was a Barlow Pocket knife. The very same knife he had hidden in his pocket right at that very moment. His brother, Hoss, broke the silence.

“Look at him, Pa. The boy’s speechless.”

They all snickered. Joe managed to find his voice long enough to muster up a believable, “Thank you,” as he accepted the knife from his father’s hand.

Ben then added, “Well, I’d say you earned it, son.”

If only his father knew how much those words cut into his heart.

 

The next day at school Joe told Mitch what had happened. Mitch instinctively wanted to protect himself in the matter and immediately asked,

“Did you tell him what we did?”

Joe answered with an indignant, “No, I wanted to live to see another day.”

Mitch realized what Joe meant by his statement. If his father ever found out, he might as well plan never to sit down properly again.

The two sat silently for quite some time. Joe felt the pangs of guilt once more returning, but he was too afraid to confess. Both boys resigned themselves to the fact that it was best to remain silent. Joe was to hide the other knife and nothing more was to be said of the matter. The only consolation that Joe found in this sudden change of events was that he no longer needed to hide the knife from his family. He rode home with Hoss that afternoon hoping that life would return to normal.

 

Two more weeks passed. Every time Joe laid sight on the knife he heard his father’s words, “I’d say you earned it, son.” The guilt inside was making the boy utterly miserable. He spent more time in his room alone because he couldn’t bear to be around his father and brothers. His family was puzzled by his evasive nature. They made many attempts at talking to him, but to no avail. Joe was good at making up flimsy excuses. He told Hoss that he had pulled a side muscle when cleaning out the barn and it felt best when he laid out flat on his bed. He told Adam that he wanted to use extra time for studying because he wanted to continue to do well in school. When Adam offered to help him study, Joe responded,

“Thanks, Adam, but I think I do my best thinking when I’m alone.”

Ben knew something was troubling the boy and usually, with the help of Hoss and Adam, Joe was easy to figure out. This time, however, Ben was dumbfounded. Even his fatherly instinct had let him down. He had no choice but to watch and wait… watch, wait, and hope that time would tell.

Fortunately, he did not have to wait very long. That night at the supper table Joe’s conscience defeated his reason.

Ben, Hoss, and Adam were busy chatting about their day. Joe sat silently picking at his food. He wasn’t very hungry and he just wanted to retire to his room. Hoss was worried about his little brother. Usually when he got into a pickle, he’d turn to him for advice. It tore at his heart to see his brother so down, so he tried to bring his spirits up by praising him.

“Pa, you should have seen Joe during ‘rithmatic today. Ms Jones gave him a tough problem and he answered it in less than a heartbeat.”

Ben knew what Hoss was trying to achieve and piggybacked on his statement.

“Well, I’m mighty proud of you, boy. What sort of problem was it?”
This was a simple question, but no one was prepared for Joe’s answer.
Suddenly, Joe slammed his fists down on the table with a mighty force.

“Stop it! Stop it! All of you just stop it!” he screamed. “Why ya got to praise me for everything I do. You’re just fooling yourselves because I’m no good. I’m no good I tell you…. NO GOOD!”

He then flew up the stairs to his room, leaving his family stunned at the table. After a moment, Adam spoke.

“Well, it looks like someone’s conscience finally got the better of him. I wonder what the boy did that would warrant such behavior?”

Ben rose from the table. “Well, I think it’s about time I found out, don’t you?”

Joe entered his room. He threw himself face first down on the bed and succumbed to his emotions. Deep down he knew there was no going back now. His father would demand an explanation.

Ben Cartwright wrapped lightly on his son’s door and did not wait for an answer before entering. Joe buried his head further into the pillow. He felt his father’s presence as he sat next to him on his bed and began rubbing his back gently. The two sat in silence for several moments.

Ben finally spoke. “Son, I need you to sit up.”

Joe complied, positioning himself next to his father. Ben studied the boy’s tear streaked face for a moment before continuing.

“I think you have something to tell me, Joseph. I want you to know that whatever it is I will listen. It’s time we both know what has been going on so that I can help you.”

Joe was so ashamed. He knew his father would help him all right, but how would he feel about him afterwards? Joe heaved a big sigh and shakily began.

“Pa…. I did a terrible thing. I’m afraid to tell you because …”

Joe could not continue.

Ben prodded, “Because why? Are you afraid I’ll punish you?”

“At first, I was afraid of that, but not now. I deserve it… every bit of it in fact. It’s just that I don’t know if you will be able to forgive me for what I’ve done. I’m …I’m just no good.”

Ben was silent for a moment. Inside his heart was breaking. What could his boy have done that would warrant not being forgiven. He chose his words carefully as he spoke.

“Joseph, I don’t expect you to go through life without making a few mistakes along the way. Everyone makes mistakes, even me. What’s important is that we learn from them. When you do something that you know is wrong you face it. You take responsibility for your actions, you try to correct what can be corrected, and then you go on with your life. You can’t beat yourself up for it. What’s done is done.”

Ben paused to put his arm around his trembling son.

“No matter what it is, Joseph, I love you and I will always forgive you. Remember that there is no love without forgiveness and no forgiveness without love.”

That evening was a long one for both father and son. Joe told his father everything. Ben listened, questioned, and supported his boy through it all. When Joe had made his last statement, placing both knives into his father’s hands, Ben quietly embraced him and whispered into his ear a soft, “I’m proud of you son.”

He straightened the boy to face him and looked deep into his tear filled eyes. Joe read the soft but stern expression on his father’s face. It was time for the consequences to be administered.

“Joseph, I think you know what must happen now. I expect you to make a full confession in front of your classmates tomorrow. I will take you over to the orphanage after school and you will apologize to Mr. Waters as well. We’ll arrange for you to help out at the orphanage until you have worked off the money you have spent on the knife. Until I say otherwise, you will be restricted to your room aside from going to school, church, or doing your chores. Is that understood?”

Joe responded with a quiet, “Yes, sir.”

Ben then heaved a big sigh. “And now, I think you and I need to make a trip out to the barn.”

Joseph hung his head, but he knew it had to be done. He acknowledged with a simple nod. This was to be the first trip out to the barn for the youngster. Up to this point his father had always administered his punishment in his room across his knee. Joe always looked back on this day later in life. It was the worst tanning he ever received from his Pa, yet it cleared his conscience and put his mind at ease.

That night as his father tucked him into bed, he softly said, “Thank you, Pa.”

His father smiled at his remark and said, “You’re welcome, son.”

The day ended with Ben giving him a goodnight kiss and each expressing their love for one another.
The next morning, Joe was escorted into school by his Pa. Mitch saw Joe and Ben enter the schoolhouse and it was like his stomach had just received a gut punch. Had Joe confessed? A moment later, Ben came out alone. He saw Mitch and could tell by the boy’s evasive nature that something was awry.

In dealing with his son the prior evening, he had also realized that there was one thing Joe said that didn’t quite wash out. He had found a dollar coin. He had bought a knife that cost 50 cents, but he never explained what he had done with the other 50 cents. Now, looking at his son’s best friend, it was starting to make sense. His son had an accomplice. He approached the boy and in the sternest voice possible addressed him on the issue.

“Joseph will be apologizing for his actions in front of the class this morning, young man. If you have had any part in this little incident, I would suggest you join him as you see fit.”

He then left Mitch to ponder his thoughts.

Joseph was sitting in the chair next to the teacher’s desk when the students entered for the day. Mitch took his usual seat and sat there with his head down. Ms. Jones clapped her hands together to gain their attention.

“Class, before we begin this morning, Joseph has something he would like to say to you… Joseph.”

Joe stood and faced his classmates. He retold the tale of how he had taken the money, but he never once acknowledged Mitch’s involvement. Mitch’s conscience began to get the better of him, especially when Joe took the blame for covering the coin with his own foot. Mitch finally could not stand it any longer. He blurted out,

“That’s not exactly true, Joe. I was the one that hid the coin, not you.”

Mitch then rose and stood by his best friend.

“I’m to blame even more so than Joe here,” he said. Joe smiled at his friend.

The boys finished their confession together and apologized side by side. They then took their seats. Nothing more was said and the day continued as any other day.

 

After school, Ben met Joe and was not surprised to find Mitch right there with him. He took both boys over to the orphanage and they made their apologies to Mr. Waters and the children. Ben made arrangements for Joe to help out afterschool with chores and encouraged Mitch to ask his father if he could help as well.

Neither boy had ever been inside the orphanage. They were taken aback by the children they saw. Many had on ragged clothes and all of them looked so thin. Both boys realized the importance of every donation and they secretly vowed to help in the future in any way possible.

As Ben and the boys came outside to board the wagon, Joe looked over at two brothers sitting on the porch. They were arguing over a sharp piece of metal that they were trying to use to carve an animal out of a piece of wood.

“It’s my turn now,” the youngest one whined. “You told me I could do the paw.”

“Yes, when I’m finished with the eye,” the older brother retorted. “You’ll just have to wait your turn.”

Joe climbed aboard the wagon and continued to watch the boys until they were out of sight.

It was a quiet ride home. Ben stopped to drop Mitch off at his farm. He noticed the boy’s reluctance to leave the wagon when his eyes fell on his father working near the barn.

“Do you want me to talk with your father, son?” Ben sympathetically asked.

There was a long pause before Mitch answered.

“No thank you, Mr. Cartwright. It’s something I have to do myself. I’ll see you tomorrow, Joe. At least I hope I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He then walked slowly toward the barn.

On the way home, Joe couldn’t get the image of the two brothers out of his mind. Finally, an idea popped into his head.

“Pa?” He said softly. “Do you still have those two Barlow knives?”

Ben glanced at his boy. “Well, yes I do, son. Why do you ask?”

“Well, I was just thinking is all.”

Ben did not respond to Joe’s comment. After a few moments, Joseph continued.

“Do you think I could have them back?”

Ben was taken aback by his son’s comment. His brow furrowed.

“You mean that you think that you should keep those knives after all that happened!?” His tone was sharp.

Joseph realized his father’s misinterpretation and quickly corrected his statement.

“Oh no, I don’t want them for me, Pa. I just thought I could give them to the two boys I saw at the orphanage. That way they would each have one for whittling.”

Ben felt foolish to have not realized his son’s true intentions. He pulled the wagon to a halt alongside the road and turned to his son.

“I don’t think I could have come up with a better solution myself, Joseph. I want you to know that I’m very proud to call you my son.”

Joe smiled broadly. Ben started the team and the wagon meandered down the road. As the sun began to set over the horizon, father and son sat side by side, each silently enjoying the company of the other.

 

Tags:  Mitch Devlin