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Authors: Christian Burch
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“Grandma’s coming to live with us until her hip is better.”
I crawled out of India’s bed and tiptoed to the kitchen for a glass of cranberry juice and then back toward my bedroom. The door to Mom and Dad’s room was open and the lights were off. I walked into their room and stood next to the bed. I stared at Mom’s face without blinking until she finally startled awake. I always wake Mom up this way. Instead ofshaking her or saying her name, I
will
her awake.
It always frightens her.
I said, “Grandma can sleep in my room when she comes to live with us.”
She scooted over and let me crawl into the bed.
That night I slept in between Mom and Dad.
May 16
Craig and two of his friends started a club at school. They call it MASK, which stands for “Men Against Smelly Keats.” Sarah said that I should tell Ms. Grant, but I think that would make them hate me even more than they already do. Sarah agreed and decided to start her own club. She calls it KICK, which stands for “Keats Is a Cool Kid.” She wanted to have the first meeting, which would have been just the two of us, on the monkey bars during recess. I told her that I had to go to the bathroom, but I really went to my secret spot behind the Dumpster to cry. When we lined up to go inside, Sarah told me that her friends Sage, Caitlyn, Elizabeth, and Alexandra wanted to join KICK.
After school we visited Grandma in the hospital.Mom and Dad asked if she would come live with us. Grandma said yes. The hospital smelled like an interstate rest area bathroom. I thought I was going to gag.
Dad asked how school was, and I told him about Sarah’s club. I didn’t tell him about Craig’s club.
Born on this day: Liberace (it’s not a cheese, like India said), Olga Korbut, Christian Lacroix
10
He Sounds Like a Butt Head
Grandma came to live with us the same day that my class took a field trip to the public swimming pool. That morning a shiny metal hospital bed was delivered into our living room. It definitely threw off the feng shui energy of the room. The same people who delivered the bed would be delivering Grandma later in the afternoon. The manny was helping Mom set up the living room like a bedroom for Grandma. That way she could watch television from her tall mechanical bed.
I kissed Mom and gave the manny a high five.
“Dude,” said the manny, “don’t forget your lunch.”
I was going to be swimming all day, so the manny packed an aquatic-themed lunch: tuna sandwich, Swedish fish, Goldfish crackers. And a bag of sand.
I grabbed my lunch, backpack, swimsuit, and towel and ran for the bus.
The day before Ms. Grant had sat us all in a circle and explained the rules of the swimming pool to us.
We already knew them.
No running.
No diving from the sides.
Swimsuits must be worn at all times.
That’s the rule that Belly always breaks.
Ms. Grant looked at the boys and said, “Hey y’all, you need to be really organized tomorrow and keep your stuff together. I can’t come into the boys’ locker room to look for lost clothes.” All the boys giggled at the thought of Ms. Grant in the boys’ locker room.
The girls rolled their eyes at the boys.
We walked from the school over to the swimming pool in a single-file line from shortest to tallest. I was first in line. I’m always first in line. There were eight girls behind me before there was another boy.
It was Craig.
When I looked back at him, he said in a fake Texas accent, “Hey, Romeo, how you like all them girls?”
I could feel my cheeks go a dark shade of pink, and I turned around just in time to see that Ms. Grant had already started to walk toward the swimming pool. I ran to catch up. The person behind me ran to catch up with me.And so on. We looked like an undulating caterpillar shimmying down the sidewalk.
The pool was only a few blocks away, but the walk seemed endless. All the way there Ms. Grant asked me questions about how Lulu was doing. Soon Ms. Grant’s
I crawled out of India’s bed and tiptoed to the kitchen for a glass of cranberry juice and then back toward my bedroom. The door to Mom and Dad’s room was open and the lights were off. I walked into their room and stood next to the bed. I stared at Mom’s face without blinking until she finally startled awake. I always wake Mom up this way. Instead ofshaking her or saying her name, I
will
her awake.
It always frightens her.
I said, “Grandma can sleep in my room when she comes to live with us.”
She scooted over and let me crawl into the bed.
That night I slept in between Mom and Dad.
May 16
Craig and two of his friends started a club at school. They call it MASK, which stands for “Men Against Smelly Keats.” Sarah said that I should tell Ms. Grant, but I think that would make them hate me even more than they already do. Sarah agreed and decided to start her own club. She calls it KICK, which stands for “Keats Is a Cool Kid.” She wanted to have the first meeting, which would have been just the two of us, on the monkey bars during recess. I told her that I had to go to the bathroom, but I really went to my secret spot behind the Dumpster to cry. When we lined up to go inside, Sarah told me that her friends Sage, Caitlyn, Elizabeth, and Alexandra wanted to join KICK.
After school we visited Grandma in the hospital.Mom and Dad asked if she would come live with us. Grandma said yes. The hospital smelled like an interstate rest area bathroom. I thought I was going to gag.
Dad asked how school was, and I told him about Sarah’s club. I didn’t tell him about Craig’s club.
Born on this day: Liberace (it’s not a cheese, like India said), Olga Korbut, Christian Lacroix
10
He Sounds Like a Butt Head
Grandma came to live with us the same day that my class took a field trip to the public swimming pool. That morning a shiny metal hospital bed was delivered into our living room. It definitely threw off the feng shui energy of the room. The same people who delivered the bed would be delivering Grandma later in the afternoon. The manny was helping Mom set up the living room like a bedroom for Grandma. That way she could watch television from her tall mechanical bed.
I kissed Mom and gave the manny a high five.
“Dude,” said the manny, “don’t forget your lunch.”
I was going to be swimming all day, so the manny packed an aquatic-themed lunch: tuna sandwich, Swedish fish, Goldfish crackers. And a bag of sand.
I grabbed my lunch, backpack, swimsuit, and towel and ran for the bus.
The day before Ms. Grant had sat us all in a circle and explained the rules of the swimming pool to us.
We already knew them.
No running.
No diving from the sides.
Swimsuits must be worn at all times.
That’s the rule that Belly always breaks.
Ms. Grant looked at the boys and said, “Hey y’all, you need to be really organized tomorrow and keep your stuff together. I can’t come into the boys’ locker room to look for lost clothes.” All the boys giggled at the thought of Ms. Grant in the boys’ locker room.
The girls rolled their eyes at the boys.
We walked from the school over to the swimming pool in a single-file line from shortest to tallest. I was first in line. I’m always first in line. There were eight girls behind me before there was another boy.
It was Craig.
When I looked back at him, he said in a fake Texas accent, “Hey, Romeo, how you like all them girls?”
I could feel my cheeks go a dark shade of pink, and I turned around just in time to see that Ms. Grant had already started to walk toward the swimming pool. I ran to catch up. The person behind me ran to catch up with me.And so on. We looked like an undulating caterpillar shimmying down the sidewalk.
The pool was only a few blocks away, but the walk seemed endless. All the way there Ms. Grant asked me questions about how Lulu was doing. Soon Ms. Grant’s
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