Toyebox Collection:Bedtime Stories

The Yo-Yo Maker

The Yo-Yo Maker

            Sven Ingleton was his name. He lived in a quiet subdivision where children filled the streets and laughter filled the air. The sun always shined and anything was possible. The children loved Sven. They would come to his toy shop everyday after school and watch him do tricks on his yo-yo’s.

            Out of all the wonderful, colorful toys Mr. Ingleton had, his yo-yo’s were the most famous. Yellow yo-yo’s, red yo-yo’s, even trick yo-yo’s filled the subdivision. On Fridays, when children got their allowance, they would always buy a new yo-yo and practice many of the awesome tricks they learned from the odd little man.

            One child in particular spent many hours a day at the toy store, practicing tricks and learning about how yo-yo’s were made. His name is Brian. Brian perfected walk the dog, he did the incredible around the world, he even did the upside down oopsy daisy.

            Sven Ingleton was as happy as he has ever been in his life. His toy store made him lots of money and children gave his life meaning. In his perfect little world he made for himself in America, he forgot one little detail. Parents.

            Many parents did not understand why a grown man would like to play with toys and wasn’t comfortable with their children spending so much time with him.

            Why him? Why not us? They would find themselves thinking. Some of the parents made their kids stay at home. Brian’s dad did something a lot worse. He saw how much Brian liked the old man and got really jealous. His days of playing ball with his son had come to an end and he did not like it at all!

            One night, while the old toymaker was sleeping, He broke into the toy store. He rummaged through the colorful knick-knacks until he found the stash of yo-yo’s. He then stole the yo-yo’s, not leaving a single one for Sven to sell to the kids this week.

            Friday came and all the children gathered outside of the toy store ready to buy up all of the yo-yo’s he had made. Mr. Ingleton came outside and made the announcement that there were none. Tears filled his eyes as many kids became disappointed.

            As he turned to go back inside his magical store, something unexpected happened. One child, followed by many more gave him their weekly allowance. “It’s okay Mr. Ingleton, we will pay you now and you can make us yo-yo’s later.” They said.

            Just like that, the old man was saved!  He immediately went to work making the little wooden yo-yo’s for all the children in his neighborhood. The next day, he delivered all the toys to all the kids with a smile on his face. Everything was back to normal.

            Brian’s father was furious. How can I stop this man from destroying my life? He thought. He paced back and forth in his living room trying to think. Finally he came up with a new plan to rid the block of Mr. Ingleton.

            That night, he once again broke into the toy store. This time, he stole all of the wood and string used to make the toys. Without the materials, no more yo-yo’s were made for the children. Friday came and no toys. Once again, he made the sad announcement to the children. He went back home with his head drooping. His eyes filled with tears as he started packing up his store.

            I’m ruined! He thought. I guess I will just have to move back to Sweden. He fell asleep thinking about his time in America and all the wonderful times he had.

            The next morning, as the sun penetrated his home, a package sat on his doorstep. A note was pinned to it.

Mr. Ingleton,

            Please don’t move away. We have all of these extra yo-yo’s we don’t need any more. If you can use the wood to make new ones we will buy them from you. Please stay in our neighborhood.

            Over a hundred signatures filled the page of the letter, inside, was many wooden yo-yo’s of every color and size. Many were broken, some were missing strings, but Sven Ingleton did not care.

            This one simple gesture made him the happiest man in the world. Hope filled the heart of the old man and he immediately went to work fixing the treasure box of lovely toys. Friday came and right on cue, the kids gathered outside of the toy store.

            He showed off the new yo-yo’s in his normal way. He used the misshapen toys to do all of his tricks. He even had new tricks this time and waited all week to show them.

            He was in middle of the incredible Beehive trick when a black limo passed in front of his store. The car slammed on his brakes sending a squealing sound deep into the air. Everyone watched as the limo pulled in front of the toy store.

            A man in a powerful black suit came out and rushed Mr. Ingleton. He whispered something in his ear and led him to the Limo. Once inside he introduced himself to Mr. Ingleton.

            “I am Kenneth Masoda, I work at a toy company as a national marketing manager. I am willing to pay you a million dollars a year to do your tricks on television using our yo-yo’s. What do you say Mr. Ingleton, Do you accept?”

            “I accept” said Sven. In the next six months, changes filled the neighborhood. Children worried that the toy store would close and the old man would move away. The store did close, but reopened about a month later.

            At the grand re-opening, everyone gathered at the front steps waiting. They had saved their allowance for the entire month in hopes of getting new yo-yo’s. Mr. Ingleton came out with boxes of professional yo-yo’s he had used on television.

            The kids eyes widened and seemed to gleam with excitement as they seen the goodies. Many worried if they had enough money to buy such a prize. Mr. Ingleton stood, and made an announcement.

            “If it had not been for this neighborhood I would not be where I am today. Thank you children for all you have done. As my way of saying thanks, every Friday I will be here handing out new yo-yo’s for free.”

            With that, he started handing out the toys to the kids without question. Ten years now passed, and the toy store became bigger than ever. A new manager greeted the kids as they entered for the first time.

            “Good morning children, My name is Brian and I run this store. If you have any questions at all, feel free to ask!”