The $10,000 Call

Courtesy of The Gold Gator / Etsy

“We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.”

~ Winston Churchill

When my four boys were young, we had our school morning routines. This day was no different. We were almost out the door when one of the kids yelled from their bedroom.

"Hey, Mom, do we have any more cardboard? I have a hole in the bottom of my shoe."

I yelled back, "In the garage. Bring me the shoe, and I'll get a piece to fit it."

As we all scrambled into the car, the three older boys settled in and took inventory, ensuring they had everything, while the youngest buckled into his car seat. One of them said, "What's for dinner tonight, Mom?"

Knowing the response, I said, "Chicken."

All three chimed in like an out-of-tune choir," Again?" Even the youngest piped in, "Again, Mama?"

"Kids, it's the best I can do on our budget. But, hey, I know, I'll make chicken spaghetti. That sounds yummy, right?"

Sounds of Crickets.

"Kids?"

"Um…Okay." One uttered.

"And I'll make oatmeal cookies for dessert! How about that?"

Crickets chirping again.

"Oh, come on, boys, work with me here." I pleaded.

We pulled up to the school, and out the door, they flew. I look at the sweet little face in the backseat. My son's eyes had a sad expression, and he said, "I don't like oatmeal cookies, Mama."

"I know you don't, sweety. So let's stop at the store, and I'll pick up some chocolate chips, and we'll make some yummy cookies today."

"Yay! Okay!" As he gently kicks his feet forward and back on the car seat. Little ones are so easy to please.

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Our local radio station, KLZZ, played on the way to and from school. They had a contest going on. You had to listen to two songs back-to-back, then wait until the second song ended before calling in. If you were the tenth caller, $10,000 would be yours! After a week of this contest, today would be the day they would play both songs back to back before noon.

People were calling in, saying their families were taking shifts during the days and nights so they wouldn't miss "the moment" in anticipation of winning.

They would say the radio station was teasing them by playing one song and then not the other, and so on. I was bummed for these listeners with their sob stories, but I found it all fascinating, too, so I kept listening.

We ran some errands after dropping the kids off and got home around 10:30. I wanted to keep listening, but knew Sesame Street would be on soon, which was my son's favorite show. Oh well. (Sigh!)

After putting groceries away and throwing some laundry in the washer, I looked for my son and found him quietly playing with his toys in his room. Huh?😳 By this time, it was almost 11:30. Okay, I'll sneak away and turn on KLZZ to listen to the final half hour.

I decided to make cookies and stay close to the radio (it was in the mid-eighties, and there were no cellphones or stereos in the kitchen, just a simple radio on the counter). People were calling between songs, saying things like, "Hurry up, I called work and told them I couldn't be in before noon," and, "I have to take my dog for a walk…please hurry!" I was shaking my head.

HEARING THE RINGING IN MY EAR

Five minutes to noon, the first song came on. I thought, "This is it! It's going to happen!" Then the second one played. "Oh my gosh! The phone was on the wall, an arm's reach away. I glanced at it and thought, maybe I should try.

I saw the picture floating by my mind of putting the piece of cardboard in my son's shoe this morning. And then, the conversation with the kids in the car, not at all happy about having chicken spaghetti for dinner. Yes, money was very tight; our bill collectors could tell you all about it.

The second song ended. I reached for the phone and dialed. (Yes, you actually had to dial a rotary phone. It took forever🙄)

Busy.

Again, I dialed…

Busy.

One more time…

Ringing??

IT'S RINGING??😳

I must have the wrong number, I thought. As I was ready to hang up and try again, I heard a voice in my head say, "Don't hang up. Just stay on."

Then the prayers started. "Listen, Spirit; you know how hard we work here; it's not like we're sitting around watching TV all day, right?"

The phone is still ringing, and I'm pacing back and forth (the phone cord could only go so far), still talking to Spirit, "I usually don't ask for things, although, if you could help us out here, I'll give $1,000 of it away to someone who needs it, like us. Winning this money would be a huge help! We could buy the kids new shoes and have something more than chicken, macaroni, and cheese for dinner. And we could pay our bills!

The phone picked up…

Photo by Fringer Cat / UNSPLASH.com

The DJ.: KLZZ. (Gulp😳)

Me: You're going to tell me I'm the 9th caller, right?

The DJ: Nope…YOU ARE THE 10th CALLER…AND…JUST WON… 10,000 DOLLARS!!!

Me: OH MY GOSH! YOU'RE KIDDING? I ACTUALLY WON 10,000 DOLLARS??

I was pacing frantically, breathing heavily!

The DJ: YES! YOU WON!! CONGRATULATIONS! WHO AM I SPEAKING TO?

I could barely get my name out and felt lightheaded from all the heavy breathing. (At this moment, my 3-year-old came out, looking startled, and tears started forming in his eyes.)

Me: Terry! (Yelling)

The DJ: YOU OKAY?

Me: YES! YES! I'M OKAY!

The DJ: WELL, TERRY, WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WITH THE 10,000 DOLLARS? (Every time his voice rose when he mentioned the money, my heart pounded and fluttered.)

Me: “I don't know. Um...

We have family in New York whom I have never met so we could take a trip and visit them. And I could take the whole family out for dinner, and we could get dessert! (I heard myself inside say, "Why did you say that? This is $10,000 we're talking about here. I did a mental hit on my forehead.🤦‍♀️)

The DJ: WELL, OKAY! (Trying to sound excited for me.) CONGRATULATIONS AGAIN, TERRY, AND STAY ON THE LINE SO WE CAN GET YOUR INFORMATION.

Me: YES!, YES! I will! AND THANK YOU SO MUCH!

The DJ had put me on hold before the last thank you, but I was a mess, and my poor little boy was hugging my leg like it was going to fall off and kept saying, "Mommy, are you okay?" I stroked his head gently and smiled; our eyes met, and he smiled back at me.

The sweet woman who took my information was wonderful at calming me down and told me I had to wait a month for the check, giving me a date to stop by the radio station to pick it up. After we said goodbye and I thanked her for the 100th time, I plopped down on the chair, brought my breathing back to normal, and stared out into space.

What just happened here?

My son climbed up on my lap and nestled in, patting my back with his little hand, just as small ones do to comfort us. On the table was a piece of paper with the information the woman had given me. I picked up the pencil and wrote what $10,000 looked like. I'm a visual person, and seeing it made it real. Who sees $10,000 at one time? Not us. I started tearing up in gratitude when I finished and looked at it. Crying never felt so good.

THE DAY WE ALL WENT OUT TO PLAY

The six of us were up early and out the door with a check for $10,000 in hand. The bank was our first stop, followed by a breakfast that was truly something to behold. We told the boys we'd be heading to Toys' R' Us after we ate. They stopped eating and looked at each other wide-eyed. We added that each of them would have $20 to spend on shopping. Again, back in the 80s, that was a lot of money for 10, 7, & 3-year-olds. They were shocked and quickly finished up and said, "Done! We're ready." One of my happiest moments that day. The rest of the day was like a dream — new clothes and shoes for everyone. We filled our cart with a variety of delicious food at the grocery store. We also got off of our bill collector's way past-due payment list. We were ecstatic to see that we had money left over to keep us afloat for a while.

NOW, WHO WAS I GOING TO GIVE 1000 DOLLARS TO?

My mom lived nearby, and so did my younger sister. My sister and her husband had three girls at the time. We would help each other with food and childcare when needed, and we all counted our pennies. So, I decided to go to the bank and withdraw $1,000 in twenty-dollar bills. I put $500 each in two envelopes. My mom and sister didn't know about this, which made me even more excited.

The first stop was the clinic where my mom worked. She was surprised to see me, but was busy. So I hugged her and said I just wanted to drop something off at her desk. There was a bit of a surprise on her face, but she hugged me back and said she'd call later. It was tough to keep a straight face, but the call was going to be exciting, so I put a little heart on the envelope and wrote, "Thank you for being my mom. I love you."

Then, I went to my sister's. She was starting dinner, and her husband and the kids were hanging around the kitchen. I thought, "This is going to be fun!"

When I arrived, she looked surprised, so I explained that I just wanted to give her something. As I handed the envelope to her, she whispered, "What's this?"

Courtesy of Karolina Grabowska / Pexel.com

I whispered back, "It's just a little something I wanted to give you guys for helping us the way you do….open it!"

When she did and saw all those $20 bills, tears began to form. She looked at her husband; he moved forward, and the kids followed, going ahead of him to look in the envelope. Mouths widened. My sister took the money out and laid each twenty, one by one, on the kitchen table, and the kids started counting, giggling, and jumping up and down. My sister waved her hand in front of her eyes to keep from crying, but it didn't work.🤗

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What I learned from this experience was that money is a tool. It is to be respected, enjoyed, and shared, and its value is in the hands of the holder.

No one has ever seen a U-Haul pulled by a hearse; it's not going with us when we leave this world, so why not use it as the gift it is?

Winning $10,000 was a fun experience. But sharing it and seeing what happened to others when I did, solidifies that what feeds me is when I give in joy, I experience joy. This way of living is a part of who I am and never ceases to provide me with heart flutters each time I put giving into action.🦋

THOUGHT TO PONDER

What if every gift we receive, whether it be money, the precious time one gives us, or kindness, is Love asking us to continue extending this beautiful energy out to those who step on our paths?

© 2025 Terry Pottinger

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