FAWN FINDS A POT OF GOLD

written by Debbie Williamson

“Hey Spot!” exclaimed Fawn. “Do you want to go for a walk?”

“Sure,” said Spot, who was in the kitchen all day baking St. Patrick’s Day cookies. “I’d love to get outside for a few hours.”

“Great,” said Fawn, grabbing his spring jacket. “Let’s go!”

It was a warm day. The sun was shining brightly over the top of the mountain. Fawn and Spot felt good to be outdoors in the fresh, mountain air.

“I just finished baking all my St. Patrick’s Day cookies,” said Spot.

“I can’t wait to eat them,” said Fawn. “I love your St. Patrick’s Day cookies.”

“Well you will have to wait until tonight when Ricky and Jenny come over,” said Spot.

Fawn noticed something shiny off in the distance.

“What is that?” Fawn pointed to the object.

“I’m not sure,” said Spot.

“I’m going to go over there and find out,” said Fawn.

Fawn went over to where the shiny object sat and he was totally amazed at what he found.

“Oh my goodness!” exclaimed Fawn. “I’ve found a pot of gold!”

Fawn reached into the pot and pulled out a few of the gold coins. He couldn’t believe how shiny they were. He couldn’t believe how many coins were in the pot.

“Fawn,” said Spot, when she came over to where Fawn had found the pot of gold. “I don’t think you should be touching that.”

“Why not?” asked Fawn.

Spot pointed to a little green hat with a shamrock on the front it, sitting in the grass beside the pot of gold.

“I think this pot of gold belongs to whoever owns this hat,” said Spot.

“But that hat looks like it would belong to a leprechaun,” said Fawn. “And we all know that leprechauns aren’t real.”

“Or do we?” asked Spot.  “I mean here it is, St. Patrick’s Day and you find a pot of gold. Never mind the fact that it was sitting right beside a leprechaun’s hat. It seems to all add up to me.”

“Are you saying what I think you are saying?” asked Fawn. “Are you saying that I can’t keep this pot of gold?”

“Fawn,” said Spot. “I don’t think it would be a good idea.”

Fawn didn’t listen to Spot. He wanted that pot of gold. He picked it up and started walking away with it.

“Okay then,” said Spot. “Just remember that you will have to pay the consequences if the leprechaun wants it back.”

“I’m not afraid of a measly little leprechaun,” said Fawn.

“It’s your choice,” said Spot.

Fawn talked all the way home about how he was going to go to the bank the next morning and cash in the pot of gold. He talked about what he was going to buy with it. He was very excited about it.

Spot, on the other hand, was worried sick about it. The pot of gold gave her an odd feeling that she just couldn’t place but she knew that it wasn’t a good feeling.

“Fawn,” said Spot, that night just before going to bed. “I think you should return that pot of gold to where you found it.”

“Not on your life,” said Fawn, taking one of Spot’s St. Patrick’s Day cookies and heading off to bed.

That night Fawn tossed and turned and when he finally did fall asleep, he had nightmare after nightmare about the pot of gold. He dreamt that a dozen leprechauns were chasing after him and Spot. He woke up screaming in the middle of the night.

“Spot,” said Fawn the next morning. “Please come with me. I’ve decided to take the pot of gold back.”

“Oh good,” said Spot.

Fawn and Spot went to the exact location that Fawn had found the pot of gold and when they got there, a little leprechaun was standing in the spot where the pot of gold was.

“Is this yours?” Fawn asked, handing the pot of gold to the leprechaun.

“Yes it is,” said the leprechaun.

“Please take it away,” said Fawn.

“I can’t,” said the leprechaun. “This pot of gold now belongs to you.”

“What?” asked Fawn.

The leprechaun explained to Fawn that if someone is as honest as he was and returns the pot of gold, then the pot of gold belongs to that person.

“No way,” said Fawn, walking away. “I want no part of it.”

“But,” said the leprechaun. “It is yours. You have to take it.”

Fawn took the pot of gold and the very first homeless person that he saw, he gave it to them. He wanted no part of that pot of gold at all.

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