The Mayor of Greenville

Once upon a time there was a little village called Greenville. The village was full of boys and girls and clowns and animals and all sorts of wonderful things. There were bears and boats and skates and plates and even a dinosaur or two. But the best reason to visit Greenville was to meet Mary. Mary was the smartest (and nicest) person in the whole village. She was also very pretty, and she always wore the loveliest things — pretty dresses and skirts, colorful tops, and shiny shoes. But best of all, she wore a great big smile (just under her button nose and twinkling eyes).

But there was one thing Greenville did not have, and that was a Mayor. Everyone living in Greenville was sad and lonely because they didn’t have a nice Mayor to look after them every day. Since Mary was the smartest and nicest person in Greenville, they asked her if she would become their Mayor and take care of them every day. So Greenville got its first Mayor and everybody was happy — especially the new Mayor, herself! For it was quite an honor to have such an important job.

For a while, everything was peaceful in Greenville. The bears played in their den, and the boats sailed on the lake, and the little girls skated in the park, and had tea and cookies on their little plates. But after a while the people in Greenville began to get a little bored. They wanted something more exciting than the same old thing every day. The new Mayor began to worry.

"What can I do?" Mayor Mary cried to herself.

And she began to toss and turn in her sleep at night as her worries grew more and more.

Then one morning it happened. Mayor Mary woke up to see the worst disaster Greenville ever faced. The village people had started a riot, and Greenville had become a mess. There were skates in the streets and plates on the sidewalk, and boats in other people’s yards. The dinosaur was on the loose and the bears were everywhere.

The Mayor was so upset,she didn’t know what to do. So she put on her best white dress and paid a call to the Mayor of the neighboring town of Blue Meadows. There she went to find out how the Mayor of Blue Meadows would handle such a riot. But the Mayor of Blue Meadows just laughed and said,

"Riot? Why that happens almost every day around here. It’s as normal as can be."

"It is?" asked the Mayor of Greenville with a look of disbelief. "But how can it be normal when everybody is so upset and making a mess of their beautiful village?"

"Well, you do have a point," said the Mayor of Blue Meadows. "I guess I never thought it could be any other way than the way it’s always been."

At that, the Mayor of Greenville sadly went back to her village to see what else she could do. She talked to the bears, and the dinosaurs, and the little girls who used to skate in the park. And what Mayor Mary found out was amazing.

"Riot?" they asked. "What do you mean by that? Nobody ever said it wasn’t OK to leave skates in the streets, and plates on the sidewalk, and boats in peoples’ front yards."

"Nobody told you!!??" cried Mayor Mary. "What do you mean by that?"

"Why that’s YOUR job," cried the village people. "We didn’t think you cared."

"Well, I care very much!" said Mayor Mary, standing as tall and as important as she knew how to stand. "It’s not safe for you to riot like this. You could all get hurt, and then what would I do?" she said as sternly as she could.

"Gee, we never thought of that," said the people. "I guess that’s why we elected you — to think of it for us!"

"Well," said Mayor Mary, "now I know what my job must be — to make sure you have fun, but do it safely, too. And take time to learn about new things, along the way. Because soon you will tire of skates and plates, and there is so much more to discover."

Then Mayor Mary set up a daily patrol to look after the villagers, to make sure that no one left their skates in the streets or their plates on the sidewalk. And just to be sure, Mayor Mary herself checked on the bears and the dinosaur to make sure they were safe and happy in their dens — and out of the way of the little children who wanted to skate in the park. The villagers were then very happy, because they knew that the Mayor was thinking about their future, and looking for ways for them to grow and discover more things to see and do. And the Mayor was happy, too. And in order to show how important her job was, she made sure that the skates and plates were put away every night, and the boats were tied up at the edge of the lake, and the bears and dinosaurs stayed where they belonged. And every day she looked after them and that made everyone very happy. Especially the proud Mayor of Greenville.