Janie finally stopped screaming, and Dan had to do something fast before she started up again. “Can I tell you what really happened to Ralphie?” he asked. She hiccoughed, nodded, and let him pull her and her fuzzy blanket onto his lap.
Dan racked his brain for an explanation that didn’t involve forgetting all about Ralphie’s open bag on the counter last night. “So, remember how Ralphie was the biggest fish at the pet store yesterday?”
He felt her nod.
“Did you notice that he had lots of fish friends?”
“He did?” Janie squeaked.
“Of course,” Dan gushed. “He was the friendliest fish in the tank, and that’s why he went away. Last night you put Ralphie’s bag on the counter by the sink. I opened it while I filled the fish bowl. I had to go kiss you goodnight, and as soon as I turned away, Ralphie splashed out of his bag into the sink!”
“But then what happened?” Janie whispered.
“He decided to swim through the pipes back to his friends at the pet store.”
“Will he going be okay, Dad?”
“Of course. Ralphie will be happy again, and I’ll take you to get a new fish friend.”
“The loneliest one, this time,” Janie nodded.
“Great idea,” Dan said. “Now, how about you watch Nemo while I help Mom with breakfast?”
“Yeah!”
Thanks to the TV, Janie didn’t notice when Marnie turned on the disposal a few minutes later. Those might have just been eggshells, but maybe not.
Can Santa learn a lesson from the Savior? Can a foreign exchange student help you see Christmas a little more clearly? Do things really look better from a distance? And just how many holiday ornaments does one woman need? Get in the Christmas Spirit with Volume 2 of award-winning stories from LDS Publisher's 2010 and 2011 Christmas Story Contests!
Click on the cover to visit the book's Amazon page.
3 comments:
Hah! Classic parenting dilemma. Well done.
Thanks! It would be a lie to say I don't have a lot of past--and present--experiences involving toddler tantrums... :)
The stories we make up to tell our kids should be published.
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