The Reason I Couldn't See the Circus

No. 712 The story introduced this time

Here, we feature stories that bring tears to your eyes, taken from bulletin boards like 2channel (now 5channel) and video sites, as "stories so good they make you cry."

The story introduced this time is from "Chicken Soup for the Soul 2", a collection of stories that depict the lives of ordinary people and warm the hearts of readers.
※Source Source Source

There was a video based on this story, so I will introduce it as well.

Content

It was when I was still in my teens.

My father and I were waiting in a long line to buy tickets for the circus.

Finally, there was only one family left in front of us.

I was strongly drawn to that family.

They were very impressive.

The family had eight children, and the oldest looked no more than twelve years old.

They didn't look very wealthy, and their clothes, while not high-end, were neatly laundered.

And, they were standing in two neat lines behind their parents, holding hands well-behaved.

The children, hearts pounding with anticipation, were happily talking about the clowns, the elephants, and the various performances they were about to see.

It seemed this was their first time seeing a circus.

For the children, today's circus would surely be a wonderful memory that would last a lifetime.

Standing in front of the children, the parents looked very proud.

The wife, holding her husband's hand tightly, looked up at him, and the husband returned her gaze with a warm smile.

The woman at the ticket counter asked for the number of tickets.

The father puffed out his chest and said, "Eight children's tickets and two adult tickets, please. This way I can let my family see the circus."

The total price of the tickets was announced.

Then, the wife let go of her husband's hand and silently looked down.

The husband's lips were also trembling.

"How much did you say?"

The woman at the counter answered again.

The father did not have enough money for that.

How could he tell the eight children behind him that they didn't have enough money to see the circus?

My father, who had been watching the situation unfold, put his hand into his pants pocket.

Then he took out a 20-dollar bill and dropped it casually.

My father bent down, picked up the bill, and tapped the man lightly on the shoulder.

"Excuse me, but this fell out of your pocket."

The man immediately understood what my father was trying to do.

He was not the kind of person to accept charity from others.

However, at that moment, he must have been at a loss due to embarrassment and despair.

He accepted the help with sincere gratitude.

He gripped my father's hand, which was offering the twenty-dollar bill, tightly with both of his own and stared straight into his eyes.

His lips were trembling, and tears were streaming down his cheeks.

"Thank you, thank you so much. This is a huge help."

My father and I returned to the car and went straight home.

That night, we were unable to see the circus.

But that was fine.

From "Chicken Soup for the Soul 2"
(Edited by Jack Canfield & Mark Victor Hansen, Diamond Inc., p. 4)

Video

I would like to introduce a video that was created based on this story.

Omoide no Yukkuri 2ch (honorific)

In closing

My note articles are not intended for profit.
I am simply writing these articles because I want to share stories that moved me to tears with all of you.

However, if there are any issues regarding "copyright," please let me know and I will delete them.

Furthermore, the header images posted were created using materials from Irasutoya and Public Domain Q: Copyright-Free Image Material Collection.

Thank you for taking your time to read this.