I woke up one morning with six hungry kids and just 75 cents in my pocket. Their father was gone. He had never been much more than a presence they ____1____. Now that he had decided to leave, there would be no more beatings, ____2____ no food either.
I washed the kids and then ____3____ them into my old 51 Chevy and drove off to find a job.
I tried to ____4____ whoever would listen that I was willing to learn anything. I had to have a job. The last place we went to was the Big Wheel truck stop. They needed someone from 11 pm to 7 am. They paid $0.65 an hour and I could start immediately.
I called the babysitter and ____5____ with her. We came to an agreement-1 of my tip money-____6____ half of what I averaged every night!
As weeks went by, the tires on my Chevy began to leak. One miserable morning, I ____7____ myself to the car and found four tires in the back seat. New tires! “Had angels(天使) taken up residence in Indiana?” I ____8____.
I was now working six nights instead of five and it still wasn’t enough. Christmas was coming and there was no money for toys. Clothes were a worry too.
On Christmas Eve, the usual customers were drinking coffee in the Big Wheel. There were the truckers, Les, Frank, and Jim. These ____9____ all just sat around and talked. When it was time for me to go home, I found several boxes in my Chevy filled with little jeans, toys and an enormous turkey. I could not believe my eyes!
I was crying with gratitude. And I will never forget the joy on the faces of my little ones that ____10____ morning.
Yes, there were angels in Indiana that long-ago December morning. And they all hung out at the Big Wheel truck stop.