I was confused by the manager’s reaction. I explained that one of my sixth-grade students had given me the card as a small end-of-year present. The manager looked at the screen again and then asked me to step closer. He explained that the card had an unusually large balance. I glanced at the amount and felt my mouth fall open. It was far more than I could have imagined a child spending on a teacher. I immediately wondered whether there had been a mistake. Perhaps the card belonged to someone else, or maybe the student had misunderstood how much money was loaded onto it.

The manager reassured me that the balance was correct. Then he explained that the card had been purchased through several separate transactions over a period of months. He had noticed something unusual in the purchase records and wanted to understand the circumstances. I suddenly felt uncomfortable accepting such an expensive gift from a child. I asked whether the money could be refunded or returned. The manager paused before answering. Then he mentioned something that made my heart sink: the boy had apparently visited the store many times, carefully adding small amounts whenever he could afford them.