It’s a one-mile walk to Subway from my house. So, since she way off school for Columbus Day, my eight-year-old daughter and I decided to stroll over for a sandwich after my morning work was complete.

On the way home she said, “Look!” She had found a one-dollar bill in the street, in front of a mailbox. “Find a penny, pick it up…” “Finders keepers?” I wanted to get home, but sensed this was one of those indispensable teaching moments that drops in your lap. Don’t miss it. So I wondered out loud who might have dropped it. We decided the owner of the house may have dropped it while checking mail. So we headed up the driveway.

The door opened and a kind-faced retired gentleman stared down at us. She handed him the dollar and explained. He looked at it and apprehended the situation immediately. “Well now, I don’t recall losing a dollar.” She brightened slightly. “I think that’s your dollar now.” He commended her for her honesty.

Back in the street we had the rest of the walk to process things. “That was a win-win,” I said. “Yes,” she responded, “I was honest AND I got I keep the dollar.” I laughed.

Then: “What if it had been $100? Would you take it back then?” “Yes, but he probably wouldn’t have let me keep it.” “Maybe he’d give you a little.”

As we walked up the driveway: “Integrity is what you do when no one is watching.”

Life is what happens while you’re making other plans.