Katie was in big trouble. She was such a sweet kid; a third-grade teacher always dreamed of having a classroom filled with Katies; she was never ever a discipline  problem. I just couldn't imagine why she had made her parents so angry. It seemed that Katie had been running up sizable charges in the lunchroom. Her parents explained that Katie brought a great homemade lunch each day, and there was no reason for her to buy school lunch. They assumed a sit-down with Katie would solve the problem, but failed. So they asked me to help them get to the bottom of this situation. So the next day, I asked Katie to my office. "Why are you charging lunches, Katie? What happened to your homemade lunch?" I asked. "I lose it," she responded. I leaned back in my chair and said, "I don't believe you, Katie. " She didn't care. "Is someone stealing your lunch, Katie?" I took a new track. "No. I just lose it," she said. Well, there was nothing else I could do. The problem was still unsolved the next week when I noticed a boy who was new to the school sitting alone at a lunch table. He always looked sad. I thought I would go and sit with him for a while. As I walked towards him, I noticed the lunch bag on the table. The name on the bag said "Katie". Now I understood and I talked to Katie. It seemed that the new boy never brought a lunch, and he wouldn't go to the lunch line for a free lunch. He had told Katie his secret and asked her not to tell anyone that his parents wanted him to get a free lunch at school. Katie asked me not to tell her parents, but I drove to her house that evening after I was sure that she was in bed. I had never seen parents so proud of their child. Katie didn't care that her parents and teacher were disappointed in her. But she cared about a little boy who was hungry and scared. Katie still buys lunch every day at school. And every day, as she heads out of the door, her mom hands her a delicious homemade lunch. What was Katie's parents' reaction to the truth about the lunch?
They were very angry. They were proud of Katie. They were disappointed. They were rather upset.