Since first grade Tolik Terentyev liked his classmate Masha Salnikova. Of course, she was the prettiest girl in the class, and she was also the best student. Needless to say, other boys in the class liked Masha too. But Tolik's parents and grandmother did not share these raptures. And when he decided to give Masha a gift for the New Year, they were not happy at all.
- Masha, of course, is a beautiful girl, smart, and she is not bad either, but you see, son, she is selfish - said mom.
- Mom is right," agreed Grandma, "but if I were you, I'd give the gift to someone else. Verochka, for example.
Vera lived in the same yard as Tolik and was a year younger than him. They used to play together a lot, but when Tolik went to school, they saw each other less often.
Actually, Vera wasn't a bad girl, but she couldn't be compared to Masha.
- Verochka - this, Verochka - this - thought Tolik angrily - Here yourself and give her gifts, if you like her so much.
And he began to think about a gift for Masha.
By the way, the latter was not only beautiful and smart, but also quite a rich girl. And her friends were the same. So Masha was expecting expensive gifts too.
And Tolik... how much could a seven-year-old boy save? So he decided to make a postcard for Masha from improvised materials. It was paper, cardboard, some leaves that he collected in the fall, scissors and glue. On Monday, Tolik came to school and said:
- Masha, look what I brought you! Happy New Year!
Masha looked at the card, and...wrinkled her nose.
- A postcard made of leaves? It's gonna fall apart. No, I don't want that.
Tolik, of course, was not a crybaby, but here he could hardly hold back the tears.
- I didn't know Masha was so mean! - he said when he got home - What am I supposed to do with the card? Throw it away?
-Well, why
just throw it away? Many northern peoples give homemade gifts, and in Greenland.
and in Greenland they give ice figures. - Grandma said calmly and
and asked, "Is the card signed?
- No - replied Tolik. - I forgot.
- So you'll sign it and give it to someone else. Just not in the class.
But Tolik was afraid to give a gift to another girl, and to whom, if he knows almost no one but his classmates. Unless...
- Give the card to Vera," Mom suggested, "you'll see she'll be very happy.
And she was right. Vera was not only happy, but also gave Tolik a homemade ball for the Christmas tree. And so he realized that not all that glitters is gold.
The end