Something about Tessa

This story is told by a woman, Therese Guy who in 1960 was attending a Catholic school.......”I got in trouble a few times in school, but there was another girl in my class who received a few more punishments than me. Her name was Tessa, and she appeared to be poor, a little filthy at times, although she always wore her school uniform. One day she came to school with invitations for her birthday party. Right away, I was determined to attend and asked my father to come along to let me buy a small gift. I was looking for something small, like a jump-rope or a T-shirt, but my eyes fell on a beautiful porcelain china set, and my dad said it’s OK to buy it. I wrapped it and when the day arrived, my father dropped me off, and he told me he’ll pick me up in two hours, encouraging me to have fun. It was a very simple house, no carpeting as we were used to, and no furnishings, no Television but just a cross hanging on the wall. I was obviously the first one there, as I met her family, surrounded with an aroma of baking goodies, which were on a table covered with an embroidered table-cloth. I chatted with Tessa as we waited for any other classmates to arrive, but it became apparent that I was the only one who accepted her invitation. She took it well though and was happy with my presence, as were her parents and her younger siblings. Then we feasted on the pastries and cakes, as I gazed at the lonely gift in the middle of the table. Tears of joy sprung from Tessa’s eyes as she opened her gift and saw the china tea set. Her family gasped in surprise. ‘Thank you,’ she said ‘no one has ever given such a fine gift.’ All at once tears sprung from my eyes also, because never have I seen someone so beautifully clothed in gratitude. When we returned to school, our classmates still avoided her company, but we became soulmates for a long time.”