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THE DONATION I reached up and pulled the large clump of moss down from the tree branch and began wadding it into a ball. Quickly, I turned toward my two-year-old granddaughter, Madison and with a growling sound I moved toward her, stomping my feet in slow motion. “The Moss Monsterrrrrrrrr,” I said, as I pushed the ball of moss toward her. She began to laugh as she ran from me. “OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD!” I heard a woman screaming. I grabbed Madison by the hand and immediately began looking in every direction. Seeing nothing I ran to the edge of the fifteen foot high bushes that turned the corner of the dirt road, dividing the campground into individual spaces and began to look around. “OH MY GOD, PLEASE HELP ME,” screamed the voice again. Quickly I turned around and saw an elderly woman running into the roadway. All at once she crouched down into a ball and continued to scream. Flying above her head was a Blue Jay, which appeared to be attacking her large beehive hairdo. I ran over and began to sling my arms at the bird, causing it to fly away. “Are you okay?” I asked. As she moved her hands away from her face there was a small amount of blood on her palm. “OH MY GOD! I am going to die,” said the woman, her arms shaking vigorously in all directions. After settling her down, I took a look at her face. It appeared to me that the Blue Jay had struck her on the face during the attack. “It’s just a little nick, no bigger than a pin head,” I advised her. “You think I’ll get that disease that’s killing all those people?” “What disease it that?” I questioned. “That bird disease that’s killing all those people.” “You mean the bird flu?” “I guess,” she said, as her entire body continued to shake. “Ma’am, you will be alright." “I think I need to go to the hospital right away. Please take me to the hospital.” “Let me get my truck and I’ll be right back,” I told her, shaking my head back and forth. “Let me get my purse,” said the woman, as she turned and began walking toward the largest motor-home I had ever seen in my life. I was astonished when she neared the door. It opened, automatically as she approached. I just stood there in amazement. I leaned forward to gaze inside and could not believe my eyes. “HURRY!" She yelled, as she looked back at me. Grabbing Madison by her hand, we hurried to my truck and then I returned. As we entered the Emergency Room area it was packed with people for as far as the eye could see. I knew this was going to be a very long and tedious ordeal. I stood looking for a seat for us to sit down but there were none available. When I turned around the woman was staring at me. “What are you looking for?” she asked me. “A place to sit down.” “You won’t need it. We won’t be here that long,” she told me. She walked up to the window and said something to the attendant. The attendant immediately picked up the telephone and made a telephone call. Less than a minute later several doctors walked in, spoke with her for several seconds, then took the elderly woman into the back. I walked outside with Madie and lit a cigarette. Before I had finished the cigarette the woman came walking out. “How does it look?” she asked. “How does what look?” “The bandage,” she replied. As I looked closely at her face, sure enough there was a clear skin toned something adhered to her cheek. “Can’t even tell it is there, can you?” she asked me. “No Ma’am.” We walked to my truck and drove back to the campground. As I stopped at her motor home she just sat there. I looked over at her waiting to see what was wrong. “Well, are you going to get the door for me?” she asked. “Sorry,” I said, as I jumped from the truck and ran around to open the door for her. “Can I ask you a question?” I said. “Certainly.” “How much does something like that cost?” I said, pointing to her large motor home. “Actually we got it very cheap. We paid about $500,000.00 but it is worth much more than that.” “I’ve never seen a motor home with an automatic Wal-Mart door on it before.” “It’s the only one of its kind,” she advised. I closed the truck door and walked around the truck to head back to my camp site. “Where is your unit?” she asked. “Right there on the corner, in space thirteen." She turned, looked around the large bush and said “I don’t see any unit.” I walked up beside her and pointed to my small Rockwood Tent Trailer. “Right there,” I said. “Oh my,” she exclaimed, as she brought her hand up to cover her mouth. I smiled, turned and headed back to my vehicle. “How much do I owe you young man?” she blurted out. “You don’t owe me anything.” “Oh yes I do. Everyone’s time is valuable.” “Just make a donation to a charity and we’ll call it even,” I told her. “Who needs a donation?” she asked. How about that hospital Danny Thomas founded many years ago?” “Who is Danny Thomas?” she questioned. “Danny Thomas the actor. You know… Marlo Thomas, his daughter from the television shows “That Girl.” “Never heard of them.” She mumbled. “What’s the name of the hospital?” she continued. “I can’t remember the name of it right now. But it is very well known. Free medical treatment to any kids who have cancer.” “Well, that’s awful nice of them. I will make a substantial donation,” She said, nodding her head forward. I slid into my truck seat, started the engine and drove down the one way dirt road back to my own camp site. As I shut off the engine I turned to see Madie asleep in the back seat. I carried her inside the tent trailer, laid her down on the pull-out bed and covered her with a blanket. After kissing her on the cheek I sat down at the table and began eating some Pringles potato chips. I turned on the small black and white television and began watching whatever snowy news could be picked up in that area. About an hour later I head someone honking their horn. I opened the trailer door and saw the woman’s large motor home sitting out on the roadway. A man in a dark blue suit was walking toward me. “Are you the gentleman who saved my wife from the terradactyl bird attack?” he asked me, with a little smile on his face. “That’s the word around town,” I replied. As he approached, he held out an envelope. I reached out and took the letter from his hand and looked at its face. The address read: “St Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital 332 North Lauderdale Memphis, Tennessee 38105” “Do you know who Danny Thomas is?” I asked him. “Well, of course. Only an idiot would not know who Danny Thomas is.” I started to tell him a little secret but I figured I had best keep that to myself. “Thank you,” he said as he reached out and shook my hand. I stood watching as he walked back to the large motor home, got in and they drove away. As I saw them turn the corner, I said to myself “I get twenty-six miles per gallon with my unit.” I walked back inside and laid the letter on the table. After a few minutes my curiosity got the better of me. I picked up the envelope and saw that there was in fact a check inside. Not being able to see the amount I held the envelope up to the small, dim ceiling light. The numbers “5” and “0” were all that I could make out. I shook the envelope back and forth but could not move the check as it was the same size as the legal envelope. Most all the numbers were hidden behind the glue fold. I sat the letter back on the table and returned to watching television. Within minutes, I had walked to my truck and retrieved my flashlight. Still I could not make out the amount of the check. Later that evening I drove to Winn Dixie to get a few grocery items. I put the check in the Post Office Box, located in the parking lot. Even to this day I have often wondered how much I donated to that wonderful organization. Was it $50.00, $500.00, $5,000, $50,000 or $500,000.00? I guess I will never know what “substantial” means when it comes to rich folks and their money.