“I do not think that pennies or people disappear into thin air,” I said. “Daddy will get your penny back for you. You will see.”
Andrew closed the door behind him.
“I have decided not to run,” said Nancy. “I do not want to run against my best friend. And I do not want to be on the committee as much as you do.”
“I will help you in the election, Karen,” said Hannie.
“Me too,” said Nancy.
“Thank you,” I replied
We put our hands together.
“One for all and all for one,” we said.
When Hannie and Nancy left, I went outside to wait for Daddy to come home from work.
“Andrew came into my room twice,” I said. “He is worried about his penny. I told him you would get it back for him.”
“Thank you for reminding me,” said Daddy. “I will see what I can do.”
“I hope Mr. Wizard sends the penny back,” I said. “If he does not, Andrew will never stop talking about it. Even when he is a very old man.” I switched to my very old man’s voice. “Where is my penny?” I said. “Has anyone seen my missing penny?”
Daddy laughed. “I will do my best to get it back. I promise.”
Election Rules
It was Tuesday morning. I was at the back of the room talking with Hannie and Nancy when Ms. Colman walked in.
“Good morning, class,” said Ms. Colman. “Everyone, please take your seats.”
“See you later,” I said. I raced to the front of the room.
It was Ricky’s turn to take attendance. When he finished he said, “Everyone is here, Ms. Colman.”
“Excellent,” Ms. Colman replied. “We have a lot to do. This morning we will make a list of those of you who would like to run for representative of the second grade. Please remember that even if you win our class election, you still may not get to be the second-grade representative. The winner in our class will have to run against the winner in Mr. Berger’s second-grade class.”
Mr. Berger’s second-grade class is next door to ours.
“Those of you who would like to run, please raise your hand,” said Ms. Colman. “Karen, would you write the names down?”
I love doing important jobs for Ms. Colman. I took out my hot pink pen. That would make the list look gigundoly beautiful. I wrote my name in big letters at the top of the page.
These are the other kids who wanted to run: Pamela, Jannie, Hank, Chris. I wrote each of their names on the list.
I turned to look at Hannie and Nancy. I knew they were wondering the same thing I was. How would Pamela and Jannie run against each other? Would one of them feel bad if the other won? I was glad I was not going to have that problem with my friends.
“We need to have some rules for the candidates to follow,” said Ms. Colman. “I will start by writing three rules on the blackboard. Then I will ask if you can think of any others.”
Here are Ms. Colman’s rules:
Rule #1: You may spend up to five dollars on campaign supplies.
Rule #2: You may campaign before and after school, and during recess. No campaigning during class time.
Rule #3: No bribes allowed. This means you may not buy votes.
“Can anyone give me an example for rule number three?” asked Ms. Colman.
Hank raised his hand.
“We cannot give candy to kids so they will vote for us,” he said.
“That is a very good example,” said Ms. Colman. “Now would anyone like to add a rule to our list?”
I raised my hand. Ms. Colman called on me.
“We are not allowed to make promises we cannot keep,” I said.
“That sounds good,” said Ms. Colman. “Will you give us an example?”
It took a minute. But I thought of a very good one.
“I should not promise to raise a million dollars if I am elected because I do not really think I could do it,” I said.
“Excellent,” said Ms. Colman.
She wrote on the board:
Rule #4: No false promises.
We decided that four rules would be enough to start. We would add more rules if we needed them later.
“All right then, class,” said Ms. Colman. “Campaigning will start on Monday.”
Morbidda Destiny
I worked on my campaign posters every day after school. By Saturday afternoon, I was ready for a break. I had plans to meet Hannie and Nancy at Morbidda Destiny’s yard sale next door.
In case you did not know it, I think Morbidda Destiny is a witch. She swishes around in a black dress. She has a wart on her nose and hairs on her chin. I used to think it was scary living next door to a witch. But Morbidda Destiny is a nice witch.
“Look at this cute cup,” said Hannie. “Maybe we should buy it for one of our tea parties.”
The cup was black and white. It looked like a cat. The cat’s tail curled up into a handle.
“That is a good cup for a witch’s tea party,” said Nancy. “But I do not think it is right for Lovely Ladies like us.”
Just then, something interesting caught my eye.
“I will be right back,” I said to Hannie and Nancy.
I hurried to a table at the other side of the yard. Leaning up against an old toaster was a big magic trick set. Guess what it was called. It was called Mr. Wizard’s Magic.
I had to find Morbidda Destiny right away. I had to find out about that set.
“I got the set from my brother,” said Morbidda Destiny when I asked her about it. “He is a famous magician. He calls himself Mr. Wizard.”
Mr. Wizard was Morbidda Destiny’s brother. Wow! This was my chance. I told Morbidda Destiny about seeing her brother’s magic show. I told her about Andrew’s special penny.
“Do you think you could get the penny back for us? Andrew is really worried about it,” I said.
“I would like to help you, Karen,” said Morbidda Destiny. “But my brother is on the road with his show. I do not know how to reach him.”
“May I look inside the box?” I asked.
“Of course,” said Morbidda Destiny. “Everything is there. I checked it carefully this morning.”
“Then I will be right back,” I said. “Please do not let anyone else buy it. I am going to get some money. I am going to get Andrew, too.”
In a flash, I was back at my house and knocking on Andrew’s door.
I was happy I had enough money in my bank to buy Mr. Wizard’s magic set. All I had to do next was show Andrew how Mr. Wizard’s fancy tricks worked. Then he would know his penny disappeared by tricks, not by magic.
I was knocking on Andrew’s door. But no one was answering. I knocked harder.
“Come in,” said Andrew finally.
I could tell by the sound of his voice that Andrew was worrying. I knew he was worrying about his penny. Have no fear, Karen is here, I thought. I opened the door to Andrew’s room.
“Andrew, your worries are over,” I said.
Real Magic
“Ta-daa! Here it is,” I said.
I held up Mr. Wizard’s magic trick set. I had made Andrew come to the yard sale to see it.
“Wait till you hear where Morbidda Destiny got this,” I said. “She got it from Mr. Wizard. Mr. Wizard is her brother!”
“Oh, boy! Now we can find out where he is,” said Andrew.
“I am afraid not,” said Morbidda Destiny, coming out of nowhere. “As I told Karen, my brother is on the road. I do not know how to reach him.”
“That is okay,” I said. “Everything I need to show Andrew is right in this box.”
I handed Morbidda Destiny the money to pay for Mr. Wizard’s magic trick set.
“I already have a magic trick set,” said Andrew. “I do not need another one. I just want to see Mr. Wizard. I want to ask him if he will use his magic to bring my penny back.”
“I told you there is no such thing as magic,” I said. “Mr. Wizard uses tricks. Look.”
I did not even
wait to go into the house. I opened up the magic trick set in the yard. Hannie and Nancy came over to see it.
“Look at all those neat things,” said Nancy.
There was a tall, black magician’s hat. There was a wand. But most important, there were cards with instructions. The cards had everything you needed to know about magic tricks. There were even pictures.
“See? Mr. Wizard’s show is just tricks,” I said. “It is not real magic. Now do you believe me?”
“No,” said Andrew. “Those tricks are for people who want to make believe they are magic. But Mr. Wizard really is magic.”
“Andrew is right,” said Morbidda Destiny. “My brother is real magic. He has been magic ever since he was a baby. Why, he even made his rattles disappear.”
I could see a twinkle in Morbidda Destiny’s eyes. I knew she was just kidding. But Andrew believed her.
“Wow! What else did he do?” asked Andrew.
“I am afraid I cannot tell. Those are family secrets,” said Morbidda Destiny.
So much for my plan. Now Andrew would never believe me. Morbidda Destiny had ruined everything. Boo and bullfrogs. I wondered if I could get my money back.
The Fight
That was my motto. It was on all my campaign fliers. I wrote it in glitter. My fliers were sparkly.
It was Monday. Ms. Colman had not come into the room yet. So the candidates were allowed to campaign. I was handing out my fliers to all the kids in the class.
“I like your fliers, Karen,” said Addie.
“Thank you. I like your new stickers,” I said.
Addie was putting three new unicorn stickers on her wheelchair tray.
“Pamela gave them to me,” said Addie. “Wasn’t that nice of her?”
“It was very nice,” I replied.
Hmm. Maybe it was too nice. Why was Pamela suddenly giving out stickers? It sounded like she was breaking rule number three: No bribes allowed.
Oh, well. At least I was not breaking any rules. I continued passing out my fliers. Hannie came over to help.
“Did you hear what Hank told Ricky?” she asked. “The whole class is talking about it.”
“No, what?” I asked.
“Hank said his uncle is a talent scout. He said if he is elected he will get someone really famous to come to Fun Night.”
“Oh, yeah?” I said.
Hmm. I wondered if Hank could really get someone famous to come to our school. If he could not, then he was breaking rule number four: No false promises.
Suddenly we heard raised voices at the back of the room. Pamela and Jannie were fighting.
“I did not take any of your dumb stickers,” said Jannie. “You should not be handing them out anyway. You are buying votes.”
“Yeah?” said Pamela. “Well, you spent more than five dollars on those fancy posters you made. But you won’t win anyway. I am going to win this election.”
Just then, Ms. Colman came into the room.
“I could hear shouting all the way down the hall,” she said. “What is going on?”
Everyone turned to look at Pamela and Jannie.
“I do not want to run anymore,” said Jannie. “I do not want to be in an election with Pamela.” Then she turned to Pamela and said, “So there.”
I was glad that the Three Musketeers were not running against each other. I did not think we would have a big fight like Pamela and Jannie. But I did not want to take any chances.
“Pamela and Jannie, we will talk about this later,” said Ms. Colman. “Now it is time for class to begin.”
I sat down at my desk and put my fliers into my notebook. That is because rule number two said no campaigning during class.
The rule was not stopping Chris. He passed a note to Natalie. I peeked when she opened it. The note said: Don’t forget to vote for me! Your pal, Chris.
Oh, well. At least one candidate had not broken any rules. Who was that candidate? Me. Karen Brewer. The candidate you can trust.
No Fair
“Step right up! Get your beautiful campaign buttons,” I called.
It was Wednesday morning before class started. I was passing out my new campaign buttons. I had wanted to put my picture on the buttons. But that would have cost too much money. I wrote my motto on them instead.
“Nice campaign buttons, Karen,” said Pamela, smiling. “I am going to hand my buttons out at lunchtime. I have one for you in case you decide not to run after all.”
“You can keep your button, Pamela. I am definitely running,” I said.
Now you see why Pamela is usually my best enemy.
As soon as Ms. Colman came in, I put my campaign buttons away.
“This morning we are going to talk about how real elections work,” Ms. Colman said.
We learned that a candidate needs to share her ideas about important issues. That way voters can decide who to vote for.
I had good ideas about having fun. I had good ideas about raising money. I needed to tell the voters my ideas.
After lunch, I dragged a milk crate out to the playground. I turned it upside down and stood on it.
“Hear ye, hear ye,” I called.
There was only one problem. Hannie and Nancy were the only ones paying any attention to me. The rest of the kids were crowded around Pamela.
“I will be right back,” said Hannie. “I will see what Pamela is up to.”
Hannie came back with one of Pamela’s campaign buttons. Guess what was on the buttons. Pamela’s picture! The kids thought her buttons were so great.
Then one by one the kids were crossing over to the other side of the playground. Chris was there.
“I will see what Chris is doing,” said Nancy. “I will be right back.”
Guess what Chris was handing out. Candy bars.
“I did not take any,” said Nancy. “Even though they are my favorite kind.”
“Thanks,” I said.
I was starting to get upset. The other candidates were not following the rules. It was no fair.
I climbed down from my milk crate.
“Mind if I use this?” asked Hank.
Before I could answer, Hank was standing on the milk crate. My milk crate.
Suddenly the kids were crowding around Hank. Guess what he promised. He promised to get two superstars to come to the Fun Night.
I was running against fancy buttons. I was running against candy bars and superstars. I could tell the kids were starting to like the other candidates better than me. They were not even giving me a chance.
“Meeting at the monkey bars,” I whispered to Hannie and Nancy.
We sat down under the monkey bars.
“What are we going to do?” asked Nancy. “Maybe we could think of a prize or something to hand out.”
“Do you think you should drop out of the race?” asked Hannie.
“No way,” I said. “I will not break the rules. And I will not drop out. I am going to stay in this race. And I am going to win. I will show them.”
The class was going inside. I jumped up and ran to the playground door. I grabbed each kid’s hand and shook it. (Important candidates always shake voters’ hands.) I told the kids my ideas.
“Hey, Karen,” said Natalie. “Chris is handing out more candy bars. Did you get one?”
I did not answer Natalie. I was too busy shaking hands.
Election Day
After lunch, Ms. Colman read a funny book to our class. It was called The Boy Who Turned into a TV Set. I was glad it was funny. I needed to be cheered up.
I had worked so hard on my campaign. But I did not think I had much chance to win the election. Maybe I could turn into a TV set. Maybe then the kids would vote for me.
As soon as the story was over, Ms. Colman handed out little slips of paper. I knew what that meant.
“It is time to hold our class election,” Ms. Colman said. “I hope you have learned something about the election process during this week of campaigning. And I hope that you have reme
mbered to follow the election rules. For example, I hope that no one has made any false promises.”
Everyone turned to look at Hank. He was squirming in his seat.
“I hope no one has spent more than five dollars on the campaign,” continued Ms. Colman.
Everyone turned to look at Pamela. Her face was bright red.
“And of course I hope no one has tried to buy any votes,” said Ms. Colman.
Everyone looked at Chris. He buried his nose in a book.
I sat up tall. I might not win this election. But at least I did not have to hide. I turned and waved to Hannie and Nancy. They waved back.
“Please write down the name of the candidate you have chosen,” said Ms. Colman. “Then fold your paper in half and pass it to the front of the room. When you vote, I suggest you keep in mind the important ideas the candidates have shared with you.”
I thought about my good ideas for Fun Night. I was sure I would be the best class representative. So I voted for myself. I knew that Hannie and Nancy would vote for me too. That made three votes.
I wondered if anyone else would vote for me. Ricky was my pretend husband. Maybe he would vote for me.
Ms. Colman wrote the names of the four candidates on the blackboard.
“Addie, would you please read the names on the slips of paper?” said Ms. Colman. “Bobby, please come up to the blackboard. It will be your job to put a check next to the names Addie calls out.”
Addie unfolded the first piece of paper. She read the name.
“Karen Brewer,” said Addie.
She unfolded another piece of paper.
“Karen Brewer,” said Addie again.
Addie kept unfolding papers. She kept calling out my name. I could hardly believe it. I got almost every vote in the class. Only three kids did not vote for me. I knew who they were. Pamela. Hank. Chris.
“Congratulations, Karen,” said Ms. Colman. “Do you have an acceptance speech prepared?”
I had written an acceptance speech a long time ago. But then I did not think I was going to win. So I had forgotten about the speech.
I did not let that stop me. I stood up and turned to the class.