The Story That Wasn't

Geneva told me this story just before going to sleep. Actually, I should say that she set up this story before going to sleep. Apparently describing the characters was too exhausting to allow for any plot development, which is too bad. I found the ghost dog monkey kind of intriguing.


Mom, can I tell you a story? Of course. Not from a book but one that I'm just telling. I have a shelf in my mind. I can look and see what I have. Hmmm... I don't have any grown-up stories in there. Just kid stories. Is it okay if I tell you a kid story? I love kid stories! Okay. This story is kind of spooky. Actually it's kind of scary. It's really scary, actually. If you get scared you can just reach over and hold my hand. Okay. It's about a ghost that's a dog but it's in the shape of a monkey. So there's a ghost dog. Monkey. A ghost that looks like a monkey and is a dog. Is he friendly? No, he's angry! He's a mean kind of ghost. Um, and also there was this princess, and her name was .............Mom! What's her name? Oh, sorry. I didn't realize you wanted me to answer. Is it Vivian? No. Claire? No. Melissa? No. Celeste? No. It's Belle. And there's another princess. She's, like, really a princess. What's her name? Why don't you just tell me? Okay, her name is Merida. So there are two good guys. Um, but there was another princess and her name was Cinderella. So there were three good guys. I mean there were four good guys. There was another princess. Four good guys ...and a HUNDRED BILLION bad guys! Woah. Isn't this a scary story? And they were in a circle, a really big circle, that was as big as this whole, like, bed. I mean house. Actually it was as big as the whole continent. As big as the whole Earth. So the princesses were there and the bad guys were all in a circle and, um, this story is going to be too long. I'll tell you a different one.


I think if I ever write a book (hi, internet! Discover me, please!) I will use this as my foreword.

Interview with Lavender

Jamaica: What is your name?
Lavender: Dada.
You're not Dada!
Yeah. Daddy.
Haha, okay. What is your favorite animal?
Wolfie.
What do wolfies eat?
Pigs.
What do wolfies say?
Huff and puff and blow your house in.
And what do wolfies like to do?
Puff.
Tell me something you like to do.
Play.
What do you play?
Chase.
Oh yeah? Who do you play chase with?
Katie.
Katie's a good friend, isn't she?
[smile, head shake]
Do you have a favorite food?
Soup, cottage cheese, and pancakes.
How do you make pancakes?
In bed!
Haha! What ingredients do you use?
Powder, butter, buttermilk, egg.
What job do you want to do when you grow up?
Paint.
Are you going to make pictures?
Yeah. Of Mommy.
How old is Mommy?
Four.
What does Mommy do?
Paint.
What do you think Mommy's favorite thing to do is?
Help me!
I do like that. Do I love you, Lali?
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
What is your favorite story?
Nemo.
Tell me about Nemo.
He four. Swim, splash, cuddle with Cory (Dory).
Who is in your family?
Sharks!
Is Ari a shark?
Uh-uh. Barracuda.
Okay, what is Geneva?
Marlin. I'm Cory. [gasp] Shark! Ahhhhhhh! [runs out]


Love her.