Why Did I Steal

Not that much really over a life time. The first thing I ever stole was a model airplane engines pocket-size from a neighbor boy. He seemed to have so many while I had none. Why he wouldn't even miss it.

Home in my room there was not much I could to with it. Did it have a propeller ? It might have had a neat suction sound as it turned over if it did. My mother thru it in the trash. The burnables although it was not burnable, but this metal marvel of a one cylinder model airplane engine was burned in the trash refuse out back, with the old newspapers, magazines and cereal boxes.

Well the neighbor boy short-cuted thru our drive way, thru the back yard and around the burnable trash bin to his house out back and discovered his missing airplane engine burnt somewhat crispy. Big hubbub ! I got mad at my mother for burning what shouldn't have been burned. But there was really no need to steal the machine for I couldn't use it - couldn't even start it. But it was neat to feel and play with.

If I stole the airplane engine about kindergarten age, the next thing I stole as memory serves is a tomato, perhaps fourth grade age. It was July or August when a big red tomato would have been ripe and juicy and worth the work. On my back in a man's back garden, pushing myself legs pumping along the long rows of tomatoes, was there the smell of cantaloupe, corn, water-mellon, in the man's back yard - he up there on his second floor porch overlook - could watch me and did watch me, while I pretended he didn't see me as I was too clever for him.

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