The next morning, Blake was up before the sun. As he was thinking about how to best help Clint process his emotions, he remembered the pain he felt when his father died unexpectedly. Clint had never experienced the loss of someone he knew personally.
When they arrived at their local pancake house, they were given a corner booth surrounded by seventy-five years of memorabilia and fading photographs of former patrons.
“Do you know my dad and I used to eat here?”
“Yeah, you told me the last time we were here.”
“Oh, did I tell you we had our last conversation here?”
“No, I didn't know that. What did you talk about?”
“Leadership—and I think we're going to talk about the same thing today.”
“We are?”
“Yep. We're going to discuss what you can do in response to Amara's death. I'm guessing the answer will involve leadership.”
“Whose leadership?” Clint asked.
“Yours,” Blake said. “What have you been thinking?”
“First, I want to get a well for Baako's village.”
“Okay, sounds like a good start; then what?”
“I don't know. But I'm going to start with the well. I did a little research, and we can dig one for about $8,000.”
“Okay . . . ,” Blake waited.
“I ruled out asking you and Mom for the money, and I thought my college fund was out of the question. However, I decided I don't have to do this on my own.”
“I'm listening.”
“I'm going to ask some of my friends to help.”
“What does that look like?”
“Initially, we're going to need to get jobs.”
“Who is we?”
“Tyler, Olivia, and Alex. They don't know about Amara's death, but I've asked them to come over this afternoon. They were all there and saw the living conditions and I'm sure they will help. I've done some quick math—depending on where we work, and if we can get a few other contributors, we should be able to raise the money in just a few months.”
“What's up?” Alex said with a huge smile. He was the first to arrive at Clint's home. “I don't know if you've ever texted: ‘We're having a meeting’ before. I don't go to a lot of meetings.”
“Well, you'll find out more in a few minutes. We'll start when the others arrive,” Clint said in a tone that reflected the weight he felt in his heart.
“Okay . . . others? Who else is coming?”
“I invited Olivia and Tyler, too.”
“Cool. This sounds serious, though.”
Before Clint could respond, the others walked in.
“Hey, guys,” Alex said. “Didn't know you were coming to the meeting,” he ribbed Clint.
“Well, it did seem odd,” Olivia admitted. “It also seemed rather serious. Is everything okay?”
“No. I'm afraid not. Have a seat,” Clint said.
“Are you sick? Do you have a disease?” Tyler asked.
“No, I'm fine—well, I'm not fine. Do you guys remember Baako and Amara?”
“Sure. Those two were amazing, and that was the trip of a lifetime,” Olivia added.
“Well, . . . .” Clint paused. “I received a letter yesterday from Baako. Amara is dead.”
“No way! She was young—like our age!”
“What happened?” Olivia asked.
“The water,” Clint said, without looking up.
“The water?”
“Yeah, do you remember the water?”
“Not really,” Tyler admitted.
“That may be because (a) there was no water in Amara's village, and (b) we were told not to drink the water they did have.”
“Man, that's awful.”
The group sat in silence. With tears rolling down her face, Olivia asked, “What are we going to do?”
“That's why I called this meeting,” Clint said.
“What can we do?” Alex asked.
“I've been doing some research. The first thing I want us to do is buy a well for Amara's village,” Clint said.
“You can do that?” Olivia asked.
“Yes—if you have the cash,” Clint responded.
“How much?” Tyler asked.
“About eight grand,” Clint said.
“Whoa, that's a lot of cash!” Tyler said in disbelief.
“I know,” Clint agreed.
“Any ideas on where we get that kind of dough?” Alex asked.
“Yes. We're all going to get summer jobs,” Clint said in a matter-of-fact tone.
“Jobs?” Tyler said. “I've never had a real job.”
“You're old enough to start,” Olivia said.
“How do you go about getting a real job?” Tyler asked.
“That's the next item on our agenda,” Clint said.
Over the next hour, the newly formed team identified more than a dozen places they might work. The list included many of the usual suspects for a summer job and a few outliers—a bakery, coffee shop, several restaurants, an appliance store, a pet grooming salon, two construction companies, a hospital, three clothing stores, a transportation company, and a school.
They divided the list based on interest and potential fit. Each would visit one prospective employer, learn what they could, find out if they were hiring, and report back to the group.
At dinner, Clint updated his family on the plan to buy a well. Blake and his wife Megan pledged their support. Kristen, his sister and eighteen months his junior, said she wanted to help, too.
Clint also told the family about the businesses he and his friends were going to visit in search of their jobs. “We're going to check them out and meet again to compare our notes before we make our final decisions.”