I scrambled up to my apartment and dumped out my goody bag. Empty caramel wrappers. A few chocolate-covered raisins. But wait! Something shiny and smooth clattered to the floor.
A mood ring! And did it ever look stunning on my finger. I’d always wanted a mood ring. I couldn’t take my eyes off it.
In bed that night I got out my flashlight to check my mood. The mood ring was blue. Blue meant sad.
During the night I had a bad dream. In my dream all the cheese disappeared from the refrigerator. Marvin slipped out the window to search for more. I couldn’t find him anywhere.
* * *
Monday morning I woke up late. But I was so happy to hear Marvin crunching his breakfast that I didn’t care. I kissed him good-bye, opened the window, and slid down the drainpipe to my car.
When I got to school, everyone was folding paper and cutting out snowflakes.
“Are we getting ready for the Christmas pageant already?” I asked.
“You mean the holiday pageant,” said Tonya.
“Mimi, would you like to be in charge of the scenery?” asked our teacher, Mr. Dayberry.
I jumped up and down. “Yes!”
Painting was so much fun that I forgot all about my mood ring. I was just about to paint the star of wonder when I remembered. It was time to check my mood.
Yellow? That was strange. Yellow meant careless. I wasn’t feeling careless at all. Was something wrong with this mood ring?
I sat up. SPLAT! My foot knocked the can of paint over. Yellow paint oozed out across the field and fountain, moor and mountain. Not to mention my dress. I felt another tear roll down my cheek. Two tears in one week!
