The Wooden Box

7 actors (4 adults – 2 male, 2 female, and 3 children. Ages may vary, parents could be played by older kids) About 20 minutes.

CAST OF CHARACTERS:

JONAH: A young boy who needs to learn gratefulness.

JOANN: Jonah’s mother, concerned about her son’s lack of gratefulness

DAVEY: Jonah’s friend who is poor and displays a good attitude of gratefulness

CHARLES: Jonah’s father

BARBARA: Davey’s mother

GRANDPA: Jonah’s grandfather

SARA: Jonah’s sister.

Excerpt:
JONAH: (Runs in) Here, Davey! You can have all these! They are old
ones and I never play them anymore.

DAVEY: Wow! Thanks! This is great! I feel like it is my birthday!

JONAH: I wouldn’t give you used games for your birthday!

BARBARA: Oh, I’m sure Davey wouldn’t know the difference.

JONAH: They still work. I think you’ll like them.

DAVEY: Thank you so much! How do you play them? I’ve never had one
before.

JONAH: You don’t know how to play them? Well, it’s not hard.
Maybe I can come over and show you. You just put it in your CD Rom
drive. You do have a CD Rom on your computer don’t you?

DAVEY: I don’t know. Do we Mom?

BARBARA: Oh, I don’t think so. We have a really old computer. We
are hoping to get a newer one some day, when we get back on our feet

DAVEY: I’m sorry, Jonah. (Hands them back) I guess I can’t use them.
Thanks anyway. It was really a neat gift.

JONAH: Just keep them. Then when you finally get a new computer,
you can use them.

BARBARA: That is so nice of you, Jonah. Thank you so much. I
think Davey is going to feel like its Christmas or something.

JONAH: I don’t know why if he can’t even play them.

DAVEY: I will have something to look forward to. Thank you!

BARBARA: Maybe Uncle Bob will let you use his computer?

DAVEY: Yeah! What a great idea! He’ll show me how to do it.

CHARLES: That’s great!

DAVEY: Thanks again, Jonah. I know I’m going to love these! Uncle
Bob has Solitaire and he lets me play. But he doesn’t have any of
these!

BARBARA: Well, we need to go, Davey. Your father is waiting in the
car. Thanks again.

DAVEY: Thank you for the chocolate cake, Mrs. Peterson. It was the
best I ever ate!

JOANN: Oh, you’re certainly welcome. Good bye!

JONAH: They are so poor! Davey doesn’t have anything! That’s
probably why he gave me this box for a present. It was something he
had that he didn’t need.

JOANN: I am so disappointed in you! Why couldn’t you say ‘thank
you’ to him without being reminded?

CHARLES: You didn’t thank Davey for the present?

JONAH: It’s just an old, ugly, useless, wooden box. I gave him all
those video games! What do you want?

JOANN: I want to see some gratitude. You were very generous with
your old games that you never play with anymore… but you really need
to work on gratitude. Davey must have thanked me 3 or 4 times for
the piece of cake and he thanked you over and over for the games…

JONAH: I think he was over-doing it a bit. They were old used ones.

CHARLES: You could do well to follow his example.

JONAH: Okay…okay… (He exits.)

CHARLES: Davey is such a good example to our son. I do see what
you mean. Jonah is very ungrateful.

JOANN: Yes.

CHARLES: Do you feel rich all of a sudden?

JOANN: Rich?

CHARLES: Yeah, I can’t even remember when computers didn’t have a
CD Rom drive built in. Well, it looks like both boys ended up with
gifts that they can’t use.

(They exit… Lights out)

SCENE TWO

(The lights come up on another area that shows Davey and Barbara
either walking to the car, or in the car –using chairs for the car-
with the dad driving.)

BARBARA: What was the present you gave Jonah? You don’t have any
money to buy something.

DAVEY: I gave him my treasure box.

BARBARA: The wooden box that your grandfather made for you? Honey!
Your grandfather MADE that!

DAVEY: I know

BARBARA: I thought you loved that box!

DAVEY: I do.

BARBARA: Then why on earth would you give that to Jonah? I don’t
know if he will appreciate it nearly as much as you did. It meant
something to you. Plus your grandfather made it.

DAVEY: Was that a bad idea? It was one of my favorite things.

BARBARA: Well, why did you decide to give him that?

DAVEY: Well. I was trying to think of what to give him. I was
going to make him a box, but I didn’t have time or the wood to make
it. Besides, in Sunday school, the teacher said that we should
always give our best, even if it costs us something. I figured that
the box was something that really had value. Even though it didn’t
cost me any money, it cost me something because I really liked it.

BARBARA: That is really amazing, Davey. God is pleased when we
serve others ahead of ourselves.

DAVEY: (Upset) Mom, I really liked my treasure box! It was my
favorite thing! (She puts her arm around him)

BARBARA: It’s okay. You were showing Christlikeness to Jonah.
(Lights out)