THE GIFT
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born all year long. He asked his father once when there was com–
pany and Father said he always thought it was the stork who brought
the flowers of Spring. Everyone laughed but Toby. He did not like
jokes which he could not understand. He asked Father if storks did
not bring babies too and Father said that there were not enough
storks to take care of all the babies of all the married couples, and
there were more marriages than storks and everyone laughed again
but Toby and Father said, because he seemed to be enjoying him–
self, that a new baby arrived every six seconds in the city of greater
New York and there was no evidence that there were any storks suf–
ficient for the growing population. But that must have been a joke
too: if there were enough ambulances for all the babies there might
be enough storks just for the babies especially because the grownups
need ambulances too.
Vera said that there was a God and Vera was very smart too
and she never told lies, she was not as smart as Mother and Father
but Mother and Father did not always tell the truth to him or to
each other. Vera taught him arithmetic quicker than the teacher
taught the class in school. Vera prayed for her family in Poland and
she told him how to pray, you must get down on your knees and
close your eyes and you must mean what you say because no one
can fool God. He could not get down on his knees in the subway
or else everyone would think he was sick but maybe it would make
no difference if he just prayed with his lips. Father and Mother did
not pray or if they did they kept it a secret but still they had every–
thing they wanted without praying while Vera who prayed all the
time did not have enough money to go back to Poland and the farm
she came from and she said she would not have enough for at least
three years and sometimes Toby heard her cry in her room because
she was so lonesome.
He was sure he was making a mistake about Vera's prayers be–
cause God knew best, Vera said. He always made mistakes because
he thought too much and did not get things straight like the time
Father and Mother took him to the moving-pictures because it was
Vera's night out: on the way they passed the Deaf and Dumb
Academy and he read the name on the sign and he shouted out:
"Deaf and dumb! Deaf and dumb! Deaf and dumb!" at the top of
his voice until his father stopped him.
