1.
Digging through
Snow with stiff fingers
Prying loose a fallen key
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2. (tentative title: Small Change)
“It’s about time,” Julie remarked when she saw her mom’s face hovering over the toaster slot. “Can’t you ever get up on time?”
“Quit wiggling.” Her mom, after a gasp of fear when she saw where Julie was, had unplugged the toaster, and was now looking more annoyed than frightened. “Do you know you could have turned the elements on, bouncing around like that?”
“Yeah, yeah, I get it...” As soon as she realized she was safe, Julie had made her usual transformation from scared child to scornful ten-year-old.
“It’s not yeah, yeah, young lady, it’s NOT yeah, yeah. “ Beth used the knob at the front of the toaster to elevate her daughter. With great care she lifted Julie out of the toaster-slot and set her down on the counter. “It’s what the hell -- I mean heck -- are you doing climbing around up here? You’ve been told!”
Julie brushed a few crumbs from her tiny jeans and t-shirt. She was small, slim, with wispy blond hair and surprisingly large blue eyes, which she used to her advantage at moments like this. She blinked up at her mom, looking contrite, but gauging when it would be safe to smile.
“Sorreee...not that I’m trying to make excuses or anything, but – I like climbing. You know I’ve always liked climbing and exploring. Sorry I got into a bit of a problem there...”
“Problem? I’m not sure I even want to know how you got up here in the first place, but you better believe this counter top is off limits until I say otherwise. Got it?” Mom could be a bit militaristic at times. But the corners of her eyes were starting to crinkle up just a bit. “Honestly, I don’t know any other parents in this neighbourhood who are fishing their kid out of the toaster this hour in the morning.” Julie’s lips pressed hard together, trying to keep from smiling quite yet...but when her mom scooped her up to snuggle against her housecoat, they were both laughing.
Half an hour later, Beth drove into the drop-off area at Julie’s school, and smiled down at the cup-holder by her seat. Julie unbuckled the tiny harness that kept her in her improvised seat, and reached up to kiss her mom good-bye. A teacher’s assistant was waiting nearby to take her to the Special Needs room. Julie grimaced. “Mom, when can I move into a regular class? I know you won’t let me take me the bus. But come on...I don’t have a disability. I’m just small, is all.”
“You know I’m working on it, honey. The official line is, it’s hard to find resources to purchase educational materials in your size... it’s hard to find materials, period. Meanwhile, if you’re in the Special Needs room, you get somebody who’s paid to help turn pages, type your answers into the computer, all that stuff.” Beth rolled down the window and handed Julie over to the teacher’s assistant. “And sweetie, about the toaster incident this morning. I’m serious about your safety; you know we all have to follow the rules so that nobody gets hurt. Bye bye.”
“Ok, bye mom. And don’t worry about me. This is school, I won’t be getting any big ideas here.”
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Thank you for reading! And please let me know if you, or a young person you know, would be interested in following the adventures of a very small girl with very big ideas.
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