Read Online It's Not the End of the World by Judy Blume - Free Book Online
Authors: Judy Blume
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her mailbox in the office. It said:
Dear Mrs. Singer and Class 6-108,
Texas is neat. It's 'warm enough to play baseball even in the winter. We got a dog. His name is Alexander, like the Great. We call him Al for short. Most of the kids here, are okay except for a few. They call me the new kid. Here's my address in case anybody feels like writing. Gary Owens 16 Sanders Road Houston, Texas
Mrs. Singer said we should all write to Gary and that would be our English lesson for the day. I wrote:
Dear Gary,
It must be nice to be where it's warm. We made Viking dioramas. Did you learn about the Vikings yet? Your dog Al sounds very nice. I still have my cat Mew, but 1 like dogs too. By now you're probably not the new kid any more. Well, that's all the news from here. Your friend, Karen Newman (I hope you remember me!)
Mrs. Singer made me copy my letter over because I didn't make paragraphs. There are a-lot of things I would have told Gary, if only he had liked me before he moved away.
My mother got a job! She's going to be the receptionist at the Global Insurance Company in East Orange. She'll probably get to bring home a million Day Books next year. She says this is just a stepping stone-something to get her going until she decides what kind of work she wants to do permanently.
Aunt Ruth and Uncle Dan came over tonight. My mother was in the basement working on an old trunk she picked up at some sale. She's refinishing it and lining the inside with flowered material. It's going to be for Amy's toys, she says. So Aunt Ruth and Uncle Dan went downstairs to see her. So did I. I wanted to hear what my mother had to say because I am almost positive Aunt Ruth doesn't want her to go to work.
"The children need you at home, Ellie," Aunt Ruth said.
"They're in school all day," Mom told her. "They won't even know I'm gone. I'm only working from nine to three and Karen will watch Amy until I get home."
"Except Wednesdays," I reminded her. "Don't forget I have Girl Scouts on Wednesdays."
"Amy can play at Roger's for half an hour on Wednesdays. I'll be home by three thirty."
"Suppose one of them gets sick?" Aunt Ruth asked. "Then what?"
"Mrs. Hedley can come. I'll make some kind of arrangement with her. Besides, they don't get sick that often."
Isn't that the truth? And I've been trying so hard.
"Ellie . . ." Uncle Dan said. "I wish you'd think this over for a while. Are you sure you can handle the responsibility of running a house and keeping a job?"
"Not to mention the children," Aunt Ruth added.
"I think I can manage," Mom said. "At any rate, I'm going to give it a try."
"What will people at work call you, Mom?" I asked. "Will you be Mrs. Newman or Miss Robinson, like before you were married?"
"I think I'll call myself Miss Newman. I'm used to being Ellie Newman. After all, that's who I've been for fifteen years." Mom opened another can of shellac and started painting the trunk.
After Aunt Ruth and Uncle Dan went home I asked Mom, "How come you didn't give in to Aunt Ruth this time?"
And Mom said, "I don't always give in to Aunt Ruth."
"Yes you do."
"That isn't so, Karen."
"Well, I think it is. Every time you go shopping Aunt Ruth tells you what to buy. And when Amy had all those sore throats Aunt Ruth made you go to her doctor."
"You're wrong," Mom said. "I may have listened to Aunt Ruth a lot of times but I don't always do what she thinks is right. And from now on I'm going to be much more careful to make up my own mind about everything."
"Mom . . ."
"Yes?"
"What do you really want to do?"
"I don't know yet. But I'm going to try to find out."
My mother is grown up. So how come she can't decide what she wants? Does she want to go to work or does she want to go to college? "I sure hope you find out soon," I told her.
"It has nothing to do with you, Karen. It isn't going to change your life one way or another."
"That's what you say!"
"Look . . . some day you and Jeff and Amy will grow up and leave home. Then what
Dear Mrs. Singer and Class 6-108,
Texas is neat. It's 'warm enough to play baseball even in the winter. We got a dog. His name is Alexander, like the Great. We call him Al for short. Most of the kids here, are okay except for a few. They call me the new kid. Here's my address in case anybody feels like writing. Gary Owens 16 Sanders Road Houston, Texas
Mrs. Singer said we should all write to Gary and that would be our English lesson for the day. I wrote:
Dear Gary,
It must be nice to be where it's warm. We made Viking dioramas. Did you learn about the Vikings yet? Your dog Al sounds very nice. I still have my cat Mew, but 1 like dogs too. By now you're probably not the new kid any more. Well, that's all the news from here. Your friend, Karen Newman (I hope you remember me!)
Mrs. Singer made me copy my letter over because I didn't make paragraphs. There are a-lot of things I would have told Gary, if only he had liked me before he moved away.
My mother got a job! She's going to be the receptionist at the Global Insurance Company in East Orange. She'll probably get to bring home a million Day Books next year. She says this is just a stepping stone-something to get her going until she decides what kind of work she wants to do permanently.
Aunt Ruth and Uncle Dan came over tonight. My mother was in the basement working on an old trunk she picked up at some sale. She's refinishing it and lining the inside with flowered material. It's going to be for Amy's toys, she says. So Aunt Ruth and Uncle Dan went downstairs to see her. So did I. I wanted to hear what my mother had to say because I am almost positive Aunt Ruth doesn't want her to go to work.
"The children need you at home, Ellie," Aunt Ruth said.
"They're in school all day," Mom told her. "They won't even know I'm gone. I'm only working from nine to three and Karen will watch Amy until I get home."
"Except Wednesdays," I reminded her. "Don't forget I have Girl Scouts on Wednesdays."
"Amy can play at Roger's for half an hour on Wednesdays. I'll be home by three thirty."
"Suppose one of them gets sick?" Aunt Ruth asked. "Then what?"
"Mrs. Hedley can come. I'll make some kind of arrangement with her. Besides, they don't get sick that often."
Isn't that the truth? And I've been trying so hard.
"Ellie . . ." Uncle Dan said. "I wish you'd think this over for a while. Are you sure you can handle the responsibility of running a house and keeping a job?"
"Not to mention the children," Aunt Ruth added.
"I think I can manage," Mom said. "At any rate, I'm going to give it a try."
"What will people at work call you, Mom?" I asked. "Will you be Mrs. Newman or Miss Robinson, like before you were married?"
"I think I'll call myself Miss Newman. I'm used to being Ellie Newman. After all, that's who I've been for fifteen years." Mom opened another can of shellac and started painting the trunk.
After Aunt Ruth and Uncle Dan went home I asked Mom, "How come you didn't give in to Aunt Ruth this time?"
And Mom said, "I don't always give in to Aunt Ruth."
"Yes you do."
"That isn't so, Karen."
"Well, I think it is. Every time you go shopping Aunt Ruth tells you what to buy. And when Amy had all those sore throats Aunt Ruth made you go to her doctor."
"You're wrong," Mom said. "I may have listened to Aunt Ruth a lot of times but I don't always do what she thinks is right. And from now on I'm going to be much more careful to make up my own mind about everything."
"Mom . . ."
"Yes?"
"What do you really want to do?"
"I don't know yet. But I'm going to try to find out."
My mother is grown up. So how come she can't decide what she wants? Does she want to go to work or does she want to go to college? "I sure hope you find out soon," I told her.
"It has nothing to do with you, Karen. It isn't going to change your life one way or another."
"That's what you say!"
"Look . . . some day you and Jeff and Amy will grow up and leave home. Then what
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