No TV?

As long as Billy could remember, he had watched Pokemon every Saturday after breakfast. But this morning, there was no television. It was gone. Billy could see where the television had been, but it was not there.

“Did somebody steal our TV?” Billy asked his Mother.

“No,” said Mother in a quiet voice.

Billy remembered when a man had come and taken the television away. It was gone almost two weeks, and Billy had gone over to Johnny’s house to watch Pokemon. Maybe the TV had broken again. “Can I go over to Johnny’s house?” Billy asked.

Mother was shaking her head slowly. “No, not this morning.”

“But I’ll miss Pokemon!” Billy cried.

“I know,” said Mother.

Daddy was shaving in the bathroom. His face was covered with fluffy suds and he was scraping it with a razor. Billy liked to watch, but today it was time for Pokemon, and Mother wouldn’t let him go to Johnny’s.

“Daddy,” Billy said. “I want to go to Johnny’s right now.”

Daddy stopped shaving with half of his face still covered with white suds. He put down his razor and looked at Billy. “It’s time for Pokemon, isn’t it?” he said, in his deep, Daddy voice.

“Yes,” Billy said. He was glad that Daddy understood.

“Billy,” Daddy said, “last night I cried.”

Billy felt really strange. Daddy never cried, not even when a big tree branch had fallen on his arm and broke it.

“I cried because I had made Jesus feel bad,” Daddy said slowly. “I had been doing things that Jesus did not want me to do.”

Billy knew what that meant. He had done wrong things, too. “Were you sorry?” he asked.

“Yes, I was—so very sorry.” Billy was surprised to see tears shining in Daddy’s eyes. “Billy,” Daddy said, looking straight at him, “I have watched things on the TV that Jesus did not want me to watch. And, Billy,” Daddy continued, “I have let you watch things that Jesus did not want you to watch.” Then he said softly, “I told Jesus I was sorry. And Jesus forgave me.” Daddy smiled, but his eyes looked determined when he said, “By the Lord’s help, I won’t do it anymore.”

A lot of things were different around Billy’s home after that. Before they ate their food together, the family would pray and thank the Lord. Daddy read a Bible story every evening, and then they would have prayer. And Mother and Daddy didn’t yell at each other any more. Instead they prayed and sang. Mother sang while she did the dishes, and Daddy sang as he worked in the yard.

Daddy showed Billy how to saw boards to make a bird feeder. After they cut the pieces out, they screwed them together. They were just hanging the feeder up by the window when Johnny came over.

“Boy, you should have seen what happened on Pokemon today,” Johnny said.

“Look at this bird feeder,” Billy said. “I cut it out all by myself.”

“Can I pour the birdseed?” asked Johnny. He touched the tan wood with his fingertips.

“Sure,” said Billy.

“Don’t you want to know what happened on Pokemon today?” Johnny asked.

“No,” Billy said, “Pokemon isn’t real. I like real things that are good.”