A poor little boy is in tears after being teased by his classmates for the cheap Halloween costume his father made until the school principal shows up wearing the same.
Levi loved his small house and his parents, Carol and Darren. They werenโt rich, but they were there for one another and him, which he admired. But one afternoon, after returning home from school, Levi was upset with his parents.
How could he not be upset? It was Halloween, the trick-or-treating season, and there was a fancy dress competition at his school, but Leviโs parents didnโt have enough money to get him a new costume.
His classmates would all be dressed as Superman, Batman, or one of the Avengers, but he would have to make do with his old costume!
โHoney, please understand,โ Carol said. โYou know, daddy and I are trying our best to save this house. We need to put money aside for the mortgage payment.โ
โDo you not love me, mom?โ asked Levi sadly. โI donโt want the house. I want a new costume. But you love the house, not me!โ
Carol sighed. โItโs not like that, honey. Mommy and daddy love you the most! We love you more than anything!โ
โNo!โ he screamed in tears. โYou are lying! You donโt love me! You love the house!โ
With that, Levi disappeared to his room in tears and didnโt come out even for dinner. No parent wants to see their children sad; even Carol didnโt. Did she have a choice, though? Not really.
They were drowned in loans, and their small shop just brought them enough to get by. But seeing Levi sad bothered her, so she discussed it with Darren over dinner.
โHeโs sad, hun,โ she said. โCan we get him a new costume? If not, Iโll find a part-time job.โ
โDonโt stress yourself out, honey,โ Darren said. โYou already have too much on your plate right now. Iโve got an ideaโฆโ
Two days later, while Levi was eating dinner alone in his room, still upset with his parents about the costume, Darren walked in with a huge parcel in his hands.
In this cruel world, we must stand up for one another and encourage the good.
โCan I come in, little boy?โ he asked at the door.
โNo, you canโt,โ Levi said. He didnโt even look up from his plate.
โEven if I say I got you a new costume?โ Darren asked. โI thought youโd be excited.โ
โDid you?โ Levi looked at the parcel in Darrenโs hands and grinned. โIs that a new outfit? Really?โ
โYes, it is!โ said Darren. โNow, can we have a little apology for mommy because you yelled at her two days ago? She was so worried about you.โ
Levi was so excited to see his new costume that he bolted from his room and hugged Carol. โYou and daddy love me! Not the house! Iโm so sorry, mom! Letโs see my new costume together!โ He held her hands and ran so fast that she almost tripped.
Then came the BIG moment. When Levi opened the parcel and saw the costume inside, he was in tears.
โIs that a robot?โ he asked. โDad, mom, I love robots!โ
โWe know you do, little boy,โ said Carol. โDo you like it? Daddy made it for you!โ
โI love it, mom and dad!โ chirped Levi, wiping his tears. โI love it very much! And I love you so much! Thank you!โ
Levi was delighted. He loved the robot costume Darren had made out of cardboard and duct tape. Yes, it wasnโt expensive, but it had his heart and his dadโs efforts.
But on the day of the fancy dress event, Levi was crying because of the costume. He was sad because all his classmates were teasing him.
โLook, Levi is wearing a piece of colored cardboard!โ a boy said and laughed. โHe couldnโt even buy a new costume!โ
โDonโt say that, Tony!โ Levi protested, swallowing the tears in his eyes. โMy dad worked hard on this! He went through videos on his computer, and he did so much hard work!โ
โOh, did he?โ another kid said and chuckled with his friends. โWell, that outfit makes you look like a loser! I bet your dadโs a loser too!โ
All the kids were so mean to Levi that he started crying. When his name was called, he didnโt show up on the stage and instead cried backstage.
Soon, the show was over, and everyone got to flaunt their costumes except Levi.
โIโm so sorry, dadโฆโ He sniffed. โI didnโt even take part in the competition! I wasted your hard work! Iโm sorryโฆโ
Suddenly, Levi heard a loud gasp. He looked at the stage and couldnโt believe his eyes. The school principal, Mr. Frederick, was on the stage, and he was dressed as a robot! A red one, unlike Levi, who was wearing a blue costume.
โWhere is my fellow robot? Levi, where are you, child?โ he called out from the stage.
โMr. Frederick?โ Levi exclaimed as he stepped onto the stage. โYou have the same costume as me!โ
โCall me, Captain Red!โ he said stiffly. โAgent Blue, you got a nice suit there! Mine took so much time to make!โ
โYou look cool, Captain Red!โ Levi smiled, having forgotten his worries. โMy dad made me this suit! I just love it!โ
โThatโs wonderful, Agent Blue! Iโll ask your dad to make me a suit next time! I saw some kids didnโt appreciate your costume, so I thought, why not show them theyโre wrong? You know what? I love your outfit! Youโre lucky! Your dad spends love on you, which is more important than just spending money on childrenโฆโ
That day, Levi won the competition. His dress stood out from the bunch of Spidermans, Batmans, Avengers, and Disney princesses, and he had a huge smile on his face as he lifted the trophy with Captain Red!
At that point, the group of mean kids huddled around Levi and apologized. โWE ARE SORRY, LEVI!โ they cried in unison. โYour costume was awesome!โ
Levi was happy that the other kids loved his costume. He shared the big basket of candies he had won as a part of the prize with them and said, โItโs ok! Iโm not sad anymore. Letโs not be mean to others, ok? Mommy and daddy say we should love each other!โ
โThatโs absolutely right, Levi,โ Mr. Frederick said gently. โAlways remember, kids, that we need to stand up for each other and encourage the good in this world. Never put others down! Thatโs what Captain Red and Agent Blue also believe in!โ he added with a wink, and all the kids happily nodded as they devoured the Halloween candies.
What can we learn from this story?
- In this cruel world, we must stand up for one another and encourage the good.ย Thanks to Mr. Frederick, the kids realized they were wrong to mock Levi and learned the importance of love over money.
- Spending love on children is more important than spending money.ย Leviโs parents couldnโt afford to buy him a new costume, but they loved him so much that they couldnโt bear the thought of him being unhappy. So they got him a lovely outfit that Darren created himself.
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