Each year in late spring, a particular town’s leaders held a celebration of the anniversary of the town’s founding. Nearly everyone attended the festivities, which were held at the park near city hall. People even came from the other side of the nearby county line to take part. Town leaders watched the weather forecast with interest and had never yet had to cancel the proceedings on account of rain.

This year, the forecast looked as clear as ever. But as activities resumed after lunch, a breeze picked up. Thunderheads massed quickly and overshadowed the park. Participants cast worried glances skyward and thought about gathering up their belongings while hoping that the bank of clouds would pass on quickly.

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Following the passing of an extremely wealthy woman, her heirs gathered to learn what portion of the estate each would receive. From the executor they learned that on a certain date in the future, each would receive enough money to pay off all their debts, and more, if they met a set of requirements before that day. The requirements included such actions as joining and contributing a number of hours to a charitable organization; selecting a stranger and paying for his or her college tuition; entirely forsaking a bad habit; and seeking out everyone they had wronged in their lives, asking forgiveness, and making amends. “The allotted time,” said the executor, “is expected to be enough to meet these stipulations. If you fail to meet them, you relinquish any and all claim upon your inheritance.”

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A certain man who enjoyed running decided to enter a race in his area to see if he could give a decent accounting of himself. He registered for the race and drove into the hills just after daybreak on the appointed day. When he arrived, he frowned and checked the location in the ad again. No one else appeared to be there. But this was the right spot supposedly.

No, there was one other person. She walked up to him.

“Here for the race?” she asked.

“Yes, can you direct me—”

“This way.” She motioned and walked away. The runner followed. In seconds they stopped at a white line across a path. The woman drew a pistol, pointed it in the air, and fired.

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A young boy decided he wanted to show his mother that he loved her, so he asked his dad for some money to buy her some candy. Knowing that his wife’s favorite treat was a Belgian chocolate bar and therefore cost more than a Milky Way, Dad gave his son several dollars to be sure to cover the purchase. They walked down to the grocery store, where the boy insisted on doing this himself while Dad waited outside. So Dad told him the name of Mom’s chocolate bar and where to find it.

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