Book Fair Zombie

Today I volunteered for a few hours at Peanut’s school to help with the Book Fair. Those few hours felt like an entire day. This is some hard work. A lot of the teachers send in their whole class at once. So we can have around 20 children looking to buy $30 video games with $3 in their pockets.

Most of the time the children don’t have a slip filled out with what their parents want them to purchase. They just have money and very little. There are a few $2 books and a lot of small supplies like erasers, pencils, bookmarks, etc. that are 45 cents to 99 cents. We do have to charge tax but many of the parents overlook that. So if I help a cute little girl find a book she likes that’s $4.99 and she only has $5, we’re putting out the money for the tax.

The volunteers are going broke by days end! And the walking around, telling kids 10 times they can’t afford something, then seeing them sneak past you to the register, watching children run in so excited to buy….toys, counting out crumpled up dollar bills that are full of pocket fuzz. I’m worn out just thinking about it.

Then there’s the look on a child’s face when they see that book about elephants that they wanted, the surprise they feel knowing they can afford a book on a cartoon they watch because it’s on sale, the joy we feel when we bring a kindergartner to the register to buy a picture book and give the volunteer “that look” meaning we’ll cover the extra money he needs and finding a poster a 3rd grader wants to buy for his sister.

I almost forgot I’ll be back on Friday to help again.