Made to Shine

Made to Shine Chapter 1

Luke 8:16-17 "No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a container, or puts it under a bed; but puts it on a stand, that those who enter in may see the light. For nothing is hidden, that will not be revealed; nor anything secret, that will not be known and come to light."

Chapter 1

"This little light of mine,  

I'm gonna let it shine.  

This little light of mine,  

I'm gonna let it shine..."

Emily sang to herself as she was walking through the nearly empty sidewalk on her way home from school in her Queens, New York neighborhood. Emily didn't have much, she never did. Her mom gave her to her grandparents to raise when she was a baby. Her mom had tried. But, she was sixteen and not married when Emily was born. Her grandparents loved her, and raised her the best they could. They lived in an apartment downtown above their bakery. Emily had not seen her mom for a couple of years and it really didn't bother her, Grandma was more of a mom to her anyway. She had gotten over the abandonment issues several years ago and she knew she was loved.

As she turned onto the busy street where the bakery has been for more than fifty years, she stopped singing, lowered her head, looking to the ground and tried to blend in to the background in hopes of not being noticed. She had spent her entire life trying to blend in and not be noticed. Sometimes it worked...sometimes it didn't. Today at school was one of those days where it didn't. Emily was at her locker after school dropping off her Science book and picking up her Math book for homework. Several guys from the football team were coming down the hallway heading to practice and Ben, Mark and Tim took notice of Emily. "Hey ragamuffin!" They would taunt her. Emily tucked her head into the locker trying to ignore them.

Mark continued, "Ragamuffin, we want cookies tomorrow!" as he approached and lifted the the bottom of her thrift store brown sweater. "You know Ragamuffin, you could be pretty if you dressed up, got a hair style and wore some make-up. And stopped hiding in your locker!" He said with a laugh as he tugged on her sweater and walked away. "Come on guys the Ragamuffin is a lost cause."

As they were walking away Ben, a player on the football team, leaned over to her and whispered. "I am sorry. I will talk to them." Then he walked off. Emily did not look at him and tried to hide herself. No one at school was nice to her! She didn't have any friends at school, not one. It did not bother her really, she liked being by herself. Most days she let their insults roll off her, and lower her head. It wasn't like she had not heard them all a million times from these same boys.

She walked into the bakery, put her backpack away upstairs in the apartment, and came out front to help her grandma at the counter. This was where her few friends would visit. Maria, the little Italian lady who came in every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for fresh bread would buy a pastry and a cup of coffee and talk to Grandma and Emily. Harold, the sweet older gentleman that did not have any family in the area, would come in every day and buy something if only coffee and a doughnut just to talk someone, but his eyes would light up when Emily spent time with him. She reminded him of his granddaughter. The regular customers were Emily's only friends. They would talk to her about how things were when they were her age and she would listen.

Grandpa did most of the baking, and he would clean the kitchen after he pulled the afternoon fresh bread out of the oven. Grandma did the decorating of the cakes, cupcakes and cookies. The bakery closed at 6 PM and Emily would clean up the front of the store: counter, tables, floor, and the outside tables while Grandma was upstairs making dinner. Emily loved to sing, but was very self conscience about not letting anyone hear her. She would close the blinds and begin cleaning. As she cleaned in her isolation, she would sing,