Garden of Hope

FADE IN:1

EXT. HOUSE - BACKYARD - MORNING2

A 60 something, frail, frumpy WOMAN kneels before a tiny garden. She stands gingerly. She is carrying a small basket of vegetables. She shuffles away from the garden. There is a small BOY watching her from the corner of the house, hidden.3

INT. HOUSE - KITCHEN - CONTINUOUS4

The WOMAN enters the modest kitchen. She places the vegetables from the garden into the kitchen sink and washes them. 5

EXT. HOUSE - BACKYARD6

The BOY is standing over the garden. The tiny garden is all but depleted. 7

INT. HOUSE - KITCHEN - NIGHT8

The WOMAN is standing over the stove, cooking. The items from the garden are sizzling in a blackened skillet. The little BOY is sitting at the kitchen table with a notebook and school textbook in front of him. 9

The WOMAN brings the food to the table. The BOY removes the books as they prepare for dinner. The meal is comprised mainly of the vegetables from the garden, and a small amount of meat.10

INT. HOUSE - KITCHEN - MORNING11

The WOMAN is at the stove cooking breakfast. The BOY is sitting at the table. 12

The WOMAN brings the food to the table. It is the same meal as the night before. The BOY begins to eat hardily, with no complaints. The WOMAN busies herself by washing the dishes and cleaning the stove area. 13

INT. HOUSE - EVENING14

The little BOY is in his bedroom. He is looking out of the window onto the backyard at the garden. It is raining heavily. 15

EXT. HOUSE - BACKYARD - CONTINUOUS16

The rain pours down upon the garden as the BOY stares out of the window. 17

EXT. STREET - DAY18

The WOMAN and the BOY walk down a busy sidewalk. She holds his hand as they walk. 19

They walk into the neighborhood convenience store. 20

INT. STORE - DAY21

The WOMAN walks through the store comparing items. The BOY is close in tow. 22

After several minutes of shopping, they walk up to the check-out counter. The woman slowly, awkwardly places her selected items onto the counter. 23

The CLERK rings up the items. The cash register DISPLAYS the amount: $8.78. 24

The WOMAN digs into a tiny purse. She withdraws six one dollar bills and a few coins. 25

The CLERK looks up at the WOMAN, then looks away. 26

She selects a few of the items and then walks back amongst the aisles and replaces them onto the shelf. She, then, walks over to another shelf and selects several packages of seeds. 27

EXT. STORE - MINUTES LATER28

The WOMAN and the BOY walk out of the store onto the sidewalk, back in the direction in which they came. 29

EXT. HOUSE - DAY30

The WOMAN and the BOY approach the house. The door is not locked. She opens it and they go inside. 31

INT. HOUSE - KITCHEN - DAY32

The WOMAN goes to put away the food. The BOY tries to help her but she kindly turns him away. Before he leaves the kitchen, she kisses him on his head. 33

INT. HOUSE - BEDROOM - DAY34

The BOY walks into his bedroom. He steps around his bed and retrieves a footstool. He opens the closet door and places the stool in the threshold. 35

The BOY stands onto the stool and reaches high, up into the closet. 36

EXT. HOUSE - BACKYARD - DAY37

The BOY stands in the backyard staring at the garden. He switches something back and forth from one hand to the other. 38

INT. HOUSE - KITCHEN - DAY39

The WOMAN is cleaning, preparing to cook a meal.40

EXT. HOUSE - BACKYARD - DAY41

The BOY is kneeling over the garden. He is working diligently, planting something into the garden. 42

INT. HOUSE - KITCHEN - DAY43

The BOY walks into kitchen through the back door. The WOMAN is still at work in the kitchen, her back is to the door. 44

As the BOY passes through the kitchen and departs down the hallway, the WOMAN looks in his direction. She notices his clothes are dirty and that he leaves a trail of soil in his wake on the kitchen floor. 45

She, then, looks out of the window at the garden. She can see that it has been disturbed. 46

INT. HOUSE - HALLWAY - CONTINUOUS47

She walks down the hallway and stops in front of the bathroom door. She can hear the shower. 48

She, then, walks into the boy's room. She notices his piggy bank resting on his bed. She picks up the piggy bank and discovers it is empty.49

A tear slowly cascades down her cheek. 50