My Friend Series
Best Selling Author
My Friend Series
“I can’t wait ‘til it’s my turn!” thought Kenny.
Kenny could see
the flowers and watch the leaves blowing in the sky. The fresh smell was making
him happy. He ran down the path and spotted a ball on the grass.
The older boys ran by and picked up the ball and played keep-away from the
other kids.
“I can’t wait ‘til it’s my turn!” whispered Kenny.
A colorful
hummingbird darted past Kenny and behind him he could hear the rushing water of
the creek. His tummy was making a sound too. Kenny ran up to his house and
thought, “I wonder what mom is doing in the kitchen? I’ll go ask her.” Just
when Kenny was about to ask his mom, his sister Cheryl ran by, and called, “Mom
what are you doing?”
“I can’t wait ‘til it’s my turn!” thought Kenny disappointedly.
Kenny quietly walked into the kitchen because he did not want his sister to tease him. There was not anyone in the kitchen; the whole family must have gone into the dining room. There was a freshly baked fruit pie on the counter. “Yummy,” said Kenny. “I love pie!” suddenly, his sister Cheryl walked into the room and took the pie. Just then, Kenny heard voices laughing in the other room.
“I can’t wait ‘til it’s my turn!”
He stomped down
the hall and followed the noise. Suddenly, Kenny heard his family shout, “Happy
Birthday, Kenny.” His mother served Kenny an enormous piece of pie with homemade
vanilla ice cream.
With a big smile,
he said, “Now it’s my turn!”
Derek dashed across the street as fast as he could run. The school was out and buses rumbled by one, two, and three big yellow buses. There was a work truck thundering down Lupita Lane. Derek saw a tree-shredder buzzing through the branches and leaves on Corina Street.
This was not
Derek’s special place.
When Derek got
closer to home, a fire truck roared past his street. Sirens screeched and
dogs barked. The firefighter clanged his bell and honked the diesel horn. It
was getting late, and Derek was happy to see the work truck leaving. The driver
of the work truck stopped his truck to talk to the driver of the tree-shredder
and left his truck running. Black smoke was shooting into the air from the
exhaust pipes of the work truck.
This was not
Derek’s special place.
Derek walked into
his house. He wanted to spend time in a special place. In the study, his sister
Deanna was playing her dance music. His brother Ron was practicing his trumpet
lessons. Derek wished they would stop making noise. He left the study, holding his
hands over his ears.
This was not
Derek’s special place.
Derek washed his
hands and went to the kitchen for a snack. The blender was mixing; the water
was running, and the dog was barking for his treat. Derek could still hear the music
playing, his brother trumpeting, and his mother clinking glasses in the
dishwater.
This was not
Derek’s special place.
Derek went to his
room and changed from his school clothes into his play clothes. Derek went to
his desk to sit down when suddenly, his little brother Calvin ran into
the room swinging his toy lasso and screaming “Yee-haw!” as he galloped by on
his pretend horse. “Ride ‘em, cowboy,” Calvin laughed as he bucked out of the
room.
This was not
Derek’s special place.
Suddenly, Derek
had an idea. Derek ran to his closet and pulled out his sleeping bag. He
grabbed extra things and ran out to the backyard. He could still hear the work
truck humming, the buses rumbling by one, two, and three, the fire bell
clanging, the tree-shredder buzzing, the music playing, the trumpet trumpeting,
the blender mixing, the water running, the dog barking, and Calvin shouting
“Yee Haw!”
Derek walked up
the stairs to the apartment, over the garage. He built a fort over his sleeping
bag and pulled out his bed pillows, a crank flashlight, fruit snacks, and some
comic books.
Now, this was
Derek’s special place!
Patrick received a little red tugboat from his Aunt Amanda. It was a birthday gift she sent him from Australia. Patrick was excited to get the new red tugboat and hugged it tightly. He played with his little red tugboat all day and slept next to it every night. But after a few months, Patrick grew tired of his little red tugboat and put it garage to grab his bicycle for a ride.
Patrick’s parents had a garage sale and Patrick gave them some toys to sell. He didn’t know that the little red tugboat was in the pile. A boy named Greg and his big brother Steve came to the sale. Steve bought the little red tugboat for his little brother and paid Patrick’s mom a quarter. Greg was happy with his tugboat and held it with excitement.
That night, Patrick was sitting at the dinner table and thought about his toys and the little red tugboat. He looked everywhere in his garage but couldn’t find it anywhere. Patrick was sad. He didn’t want to play with any of his other toys. He just wanted his little red tugboat.
Greg played with the little red tugboat in the pond at the park. He would “toot- toot!” as the little red tugboat passed ducks and other boats floating in the pond. One day, Greg was called home for lunch and left the little red tugboat in the pond. That night, the wind blew hard, and the little red tugboat pushed across the pond to the other side.
The little red tugboat had floated away and landed in the reeds at the end of the pond. There it stayed for many summers. One afternoon, a woman spotted the little red tugboat while she was walking her dog Blondee and took it back to her house, clenching it. She cleaned the little red tugboat and put it on a bookshelf in her study.
Many years passed, and Patrick had grown up. One Saturday, he was driving home and stopped to look through an estate sale. He found story books, small seashells, a brass compass, a golden bell, and a little tugboat like the one he had when he was a boy.
When Patrick arrived home, he brought the little tugboat to his son Hayden. Patrick told the story of the little red tugboat to Hayden. They wanted to show the tugboat to Amanda who was visiting from Australia. When Amanda came over for dinner, they showed the boat to her.
Hayden was showing his Great-Aunt Amanda the boat, and asked her, “Do you think it is the same little red tugboat?” Smiling, she said, “Yes, I believe it is.” Aunt Amanda turned it over and saw her name on the bottom of the tugboat where she had carved it into the rudder. Aunt Amanda gave Hayden a hug, “You see, I had made this boat myself, especially for your father when he was your age.” Hayden proudly looked at his dad and held the little red tugboat tightly.
Vamanos was a rodeo horse for eleven 11 years of his life. He was a rodeo clown and saved many lives from danger. When Vamanos was retired, he was very exhausted. When anyone approached him, Vamanos would shy away or be surly to the farmer’s daughter, Sophia. She would try to approach Vamanos in the barn or in the paddock. Often, Sophia tried to see Vamanos during mealtime, but Vamanos would run away.
Vamanos enjoyed
being by himself, and he would not socialize with any of the other farm animals.
Before long, he was always alone in the field. Sophia tried to love and care for
him, but Vamanos was afraid she would want him to go to the rodeo like it was
before. Sophia was patient and would try every day to gain Vamanos’ trust.
One evening,
Sophia was walking from the barn to the farmhouse with a large bundle of
clothes she had removed from the line when, out of nowhere, Vamanos reared up and
knocked Sophia over, dropping her bundle of laundry onto the ground. Vamanos
stomped around Sophia and then ran away. Sophia was unharmed but her feelings were,
and she cried. The farmer ran to his daughter and made sure she was all
right. Sophia held onto her daddy until they were inside the farmhouse.
The farmer put
Vamanos into the barn for the night and locked him behind a gate. He was terribly
upset at Vamanos, but the farmer wanted to make sure the horse was all right.
The next morning, the farmer’s spouse saw a pair of britches on the ground
beside the barn and stooped down to pick them up. She found a trampled
rattlesnake that was beneath the britches, and she wondered about the accident
with Sophia the evening before.
When the farmer
and his wife talked, they realized Vamanos was protecting Sophia from danger,
and they were happy that Vamanos was around to help their daughter. A doctor
arrived, and the farmer explained what they had found in the yard. The doctor
agreed and examined Vamanos just in case it hurt him. The doctor was
pleased to find Vamanos in perfect health and high spirits. He bid farewell to
the farmer and his wife and wished the best to Sophia.
The farmer walked
Vamanos to the paddock and led him to the feed buckets. The farmer had mixed an
extra scoop of sugar beets and dry molasses into Vamanos’ barley and oats.
Vamanos finished his special treat and ran around the paddock, looking for
Sophia. It surprised him to see that Sophia was not around the paddock.
Trotting, he made his way to the barn, but Sophia was not there either. He
trotted over to the stables, and he still could not find Sophia.
Finally, Vamanos
walked around the side of the farmhouse and looked inside the windows until he
saw Sophia playing in her room. Vamanos whinnied as loud as he could to get her
attention. Startled, Sophia looked up quickly from the noise. When Sophia saw it was Vamanos, she looked at him with a smile and ran to her window.
Sophia opened her window and Vamanos poked his nose into her room. Sophia
hugged Vamanos and thanked him for protecting her.
The next few days,
Vamanos let Sophia move closer than she ever had before. He let her brush his
mane and scratch underneath his jaw. Sophia was so happy to care for Vamanos
and he was happy, too. Vamanos would follow Sophia as she worked on her chores
and helped her father with the other animals. In the afternoons, Sophia would
fall asleep on the porch and Vamanos would wait in the shade until she was
awake. Sophia would always wake up and get Vamanos a treat.
Early one spring,
the rodeo was coming into town and Vamanos could feel it in the air. He got surly again, and only Sophia could get him to calm down. One of the
other horses stepped too close to Sophia and Vamanos snipped at the other
horse. Sophia was scared, so she asked her father to look at Vamanos again. The farmer
placed Vamanos into his stable and made sure that Sophia brushed the horse
until he calmed down. Sophia braided the horse’s mane and tail and made sure he
was comfortable. Sophia slipped him a special treat of peppermint sticks to see
if that would help his behavior, and it did.
All week Vamanos
was temperamental, but Sophia took loving care of him. It was the last night of
the rodeo, and Sophia made sure Vamanos was comfortable before she and her
family left to see the barrel racing. The evening was exciting, but Sophia could
not stop thinking of Vamanos. She told her father how she felt, and he admitted he was feeling tired too and they should go home early. The farmer and his
wife drove Sophia home so they could look in on Vamanos.
When the family
arrived home, it surprised them to see the ranch supervisor waiting at the
farmer’s home. Sophia knew something must have happened to Vamanos. The supervisor
and the farmer talked with each other when she ran to the barn and
looked for Vamanos in the stables. A gate to the horse stable was open and
Vamanos was gone. The farmer and the supervisor called everyone in the
community to join the search for Vamanos.
In the morning,
the farmer and the supervisor returned from a long night of searching for
Vamanos. When Sophia saw her father return, it devastated her to see that her
horse was not with him. Each day Sophia would go outside and leave food and
fresh hay out for Vamanos to come home to in the barn. This lasted three days
before someone knocked on the door. When the farmer answered the door, there
stood Vamanos and a very tall man in a ten-gallon hat and a pair of brown
chaps.
The tall man
explained that as the rodeo was leaving town, the trailers loaded, the
metal arenas were torn down and packed, and the vendors closed up shop; nobody
realized there was an extra horse in the trailer. The director of the rodeo had
called every town for a missing horse until he found Sophia’s notices all
over the newspapers. The tall man was glad to have found the correct farm; he
was getting nervous. He would have to keep the horse.
Sophia was sitting
by the creek and leaning against a giant pepper tree. She watched the water in
the creek bed float by slowly and her reflection would show how sad she felt
about her missing horse, Vamanos. She was watching the water when leaves fell
into the water and would ripple her sight until the water cleared up. This time,
when the leaves fell and the water cleared, she saw a reflection of herself and
Vamanos. She jumped onto her feet and hugged Vamanos around the neck. She cried, but this time because she was so happy to see her horse.
She loved him so
much and really missed him while he was gone. When Sophia heard the story about
the tall man, she knew Vamanos must have jumped the gate and followed the
family to the rodeo. With all the packing and moving of the rodeo, Vamanos got
lost in the commotion. The farmer was glad to see his daughter happy again and
made sure the gates were raised. From then on, Vamanos would go to the rodeo with
the farmer, the farmer’s spouse, and the little girl, Sophia.
Hayden was born in the small town of Lake Tahoe at the edge of the Toiyabe National Forest. His father was a retired forest supervisor who took tourists on hikes throughout the Lake Tahoe basin. He named his son after a famous composer. Hayden could remember how he hiked the basin many times as a child, listening to his father’s classical music. That was five years earlier and he was turning twelve this year.
Hayden, and his
sisters, Katie, and Sophia often would wait at the beach for their father to
pass by on his hike with the tourists. When the tour was over, the children
were there to meet him and walk home. The season was getting cold and soon the
trails would be a blanket of white snow. The mountains and forest would close
until the next season.
Hayden and his
sisters followed their father into their yard, but first, they stored their gear
in the shed and took off their dusty hiking boots before they could go inside
the warm house. Hayden’s father kept a pair of knitted slippers in the mudroom
and the children had matching slippers in their cubbies. Inside their home, the
floors were cold tiles, and the slippers warmed their feet.
That evening, they
were eating their dinner, and Hayden said to his father, “I passed my Junior
Ranger Exam, and I was wondering if I might go hiking with you next season?”
Hayden’s father agreed to take him on his tours, but Hayden would have to work
out and gain better endurance.
Hiking the Lake
Tahoe Basin was not an easy trek. After dinner, with excitement over the news,
Hayden disappeared into his room to call his friends.
The first thing
every morning, Hayden was working out with his friends. He would work hard to do
more than anyone else. Usually, Hayden was the last to finish his exercises. It
was getting cold at night and Hayden was very sore every day. The family would
sit around the fireplace and Father would tell Hayden about the trails or the
rest stops he would need to know about for the tourists. It was not long before
Hayden was asleep under his covers and his father would have to turn out the
lights.
Snow covered the
mountains, and the trees looked as if they had fluffy white coats. Saplings
would grow underneath the tree’s canopy, and it was getting harder to make it
around town. Many days, the only way to get around was by wearing snowshoes or cross-country
skis. Hayden and his friends would go skiing every day, and Hayden would
volunteer to pull the gear up the hills for the extra training. His friends
would never argue with him over that chore.
All winter Hayden
trained, and his father would prepare pouches of brochures and maps for his
hikers. He would have hundreds of pouches prepared by the time springtime came
around. The holidays were approaching and soon it would be Christmas. For
Christmas, Hayden received a new pair of hiking boots, a compass, and a funny-looking hat. Hayden could not wait for the winter to be over. Every night, he
would check on his new boots and compass sitting in the mudroom. The hat was
in his room. He still thought it looked silly, but he knew it was a part of his
uniform.
Sometimes at
night, Hayden’s father would evaluate him on his knowledge of the trails. His
father was impressed that Hayden remembered so much. Hayden liked the way his
father would play games with the information; it made learning fun and easier
to remember. The girls did not fare as well, but they gave it their best try.
Sophia would answer everything with one of her made-up horse names and by the
end of the game, everyone was laughing and having an enjoyable time galloping
around the house.
By March, Hayden
and his sisters had celebrated their birthdays and the last party given. Hayden
had received a pair of hiking gloves and a set of golf clubs. His sister Katie
was happy she received her favorite book series, and Sophia was galloping on
her life-sized pony, Butterscotch. Soon the snow was melting, and Hayden could
go outside and play golf with his friends. Hayden enjoyed going out to exercise
and build his strength. With the trails clearing up, Hayden was hiking more
each day, and he was feeling more muscular.
One day, the
children returned from an early walk. It was a beautiful sight to see the
evergreens blooming and the snow trickling down the mountains into the lake as natural waterfalls. Hayden knew his father would leave soon for the trails. In April, the family celebrated spring break. Hayden took
time out from his play to review the lessons his father had left for him while
his father was away to prepare his stops on the trail.
Hayden’s father left him a note that explained his duties closer to home. Hayden was excited because he knew that soon he would hike with his father. Often, he would drop to the ground and pump out ten push-ups, and his friends would drop beside him and try to race Hayden. His strength had grown over the winter, and he was ready. This routine went on for days before he heard his mother on the phone and found out his father was on his way home.
One evening, his
father had just returned, and the family was enjoying a pizza for dinner. He
asked Hayden, “Do you feel you are ready to go on the tour tomorrow?” Hayden
shook his head excitedly because his mouth was full of pepperoni pizza. He
tried to answer, but it came out in a loud mumble. Hayden’s parents laughed as
he made quick work of his dinner plate and asked to go pack. His father
suspected Hayden was in his room doing pushups because Hayden had packed early all
winter.
In the morning,
Hayden’s mother made breakfast for everyone and packed a sack lunch for the
trail. Hayden and his father left early, and the girls waved goodbye as the men
made their way to the shack where the tourists were gathering. Hayden eagerly
tried to pick up all the packs, but his father made sure they were splitting
the load. They took the tourists up the trail for a few hours, and after a
while, they stopped to rest at the halfway mark. Hayden’s father was attending
to the hikers. When Hayden finished handing out bottles of water, he looked
down the mountain to see if he could spot his house. Hayden could not believe
how beautiful it was on the trail.
As the day grew later, Hayden saw the tourists were getting closer to the end of their trail. They would soon set up camp and have dinner. Hayden’s father made his way to the camp and unloaded the supplies for dinner. It was not long before they were all sitting down for dinner. All the tents were built now, and Hayden’s father was stoking the fire.
The stars were
glowing. The moon looked like a thumbnail and Hayden’s father
identified constellations to the tourists. After stories, and too many S’mores,
Hayden had thought of the day’s adventures. He was so happy his father took him
along the trail, and he lay there with his arms behind his head. Hayden fell
asleep under the evening sky.
The next morning,
Hayden woke up to a beautiful sunrise. He lit the fire and prepared the
supplies for his father to make breakfast. After they had eaten, the tourists
helped clean up the camp and made sure that the area was clean, just the way
they had found it. They hiked slowly as the trail was full of dew, and they
could see the glistening on the tree trunks and branches. As they made
their way down the trail, Hayden could see that the houses down below were
waking up as the chimneys were expelling smoke one by one.
After a long day,
Hayden finally saw the end of the trail approaching. They had the best hike he
could remember, and it was ending. The sky was growing darker, and they
finished their walk, saying goodbye to the tourists. One by one, the people drove
away. This was an exciting hike for Hayden, and suddenly it was over. Hayden’s
father walked up to his son and said, “You did really well today. You can be my
Junior Ranger anytime, and I am proud of you son, thank you.”
Katie was visiting her
grandparents, and they went to the park to see the old Ferris wheel.
The city built the Ferris wheel in the early 1920s, and it was in bad
disrepair. Grandma saw the Ferris wheel and remembered the day the city had
opened the park with its additional attraction. Grandpa and Grandma remembered a ticket was not cheap, and they would save the entire week so that they could
ride the Ferris wheel.
Grandma would ride the
red car on the Ferris wheel. She liked the gold ribbons and the sparkles
painted on the outside of the car. She had so much fun going up, around, and
down with her friends. Sometimes, they would rock the car. Now, the red car was
fading, and the gold was missing sparkles. Grandma was sad to see her special
memories were fading as well.
Katie and Grandma walked
around the Ferris wheel. Grandma explained to Katie how she remembered riding
the Ferris wheel without holding on and her friends would squeal with delight
from the daring move. Katie looked to see who was around and whispered to her
grandma that she had never held on, either. They both giggled as they looked up at
the different faded chairs. Katie and her grandma agreed that even though the cars
had faded, they were still beautiful.
Katie admitted to her
grandma that she liked to spin her chair fast. Grandma looked as if she missed
the fun as well, but was smiling at Katie’s story. Grandma wished the Ferris wheel could be repaired. Benches and cars were even missing from the
wheel. Grandpa walked up with ice cream cones for everyone. Grandpa was even
sad the attraction had closed. He put an arm around Katie’s shoulder and kissed
her on the head.
Months had passed and
the annual carnival was opening on Saturday. Katie wanted to go to the carnival
to see the rides, but she thought the Ferris wheel was most likely gone. She
invited her grandparents for moral support, and they were happy to go with her.
Katie was wondering what rides the carnival was going to offer instead of the
Ferris wheel. When they arrived, they entered the amusement gallery?
Katie won a hat and a
mirror with the word Smile Etched on the surface. Grandpa won a giant panda
by throwing rings on a bottle and giving it to Katie. Grandma won a stuffed worm she gave to the first little boy she ran into inside the gallery. They
laughed when the boy’s face lit up like a light as he ran off to tell his mom.
Everyone was having fun, but Katie still missed her Ferris wheel.
Katie walked further
ahead and took silly photos in the photo booth. Grandpa and Grandma took their
picture and in one they kissed. “How embarrassing,” Katie laughed. Grandpa
tried to give Katie a kiss, but she squealed and dodged away. They laughed
again. Katie grew silent and stared past her grandparents. Grandpa and Grandma
turned around to see what had startled Katie.
Behind them, the old
Ferris wheel was working perfectly. It had new cars painted in bright colors
with beautiful gold ribbons and decorations. The center had a large, mirrored
star outlined with colored bulbs, which blinked on and off. Katie was thrilled
that the Ferris wheel was still there, and that it was so beautiful.
Grandma
was happy too. She sat in her red car with gold ribbons and sparkles. Grandpa
chose the blue car with sailboats and anchors, and Katie sat in the green car
with daisies and wildflowers. Katie was smiling and laughing as the Ferris
wheel went around and around. Grandma smiled when she saw Katie let go of the
bar. Grandpa and Grandma spent the rest of the evening riding the Ferris wheel
and laughing with Katie. It was fun to ride the Ferris wheel and Katie returned
every year even after she had her own children.