Money Tree Conversation

Why do they say money grows on trees? I don’t know I admit Her eight-year-old eyes look into my soul. They kind of do though because money is made of paper And paper is made from trees, right? I guess so, I say. The conversation continues. On and on and on and on and on. Have you met eight? I finally say, “I have a money tree in my yard.” She snorts, snickers, laughs. She does have a money tree, her seventeen-year-old sister says. Her face changes; it is an unfamiliar expression of hesitation. Wait a second, she says, “You told me that you lie, right?” Sometimes I admit. She looks relieved. “You don’t have a money tree, right?” Right, I admit. Shaken down by a determined, serious five-year-old.