"CHAPTERS"

An American English Tale…

Once upon a time, in a country far across the sea called England, there lived three beautiful, little sisters named: Emma, Lauren and Anna. The three sisters were known for being smart, clever and funny, but above all, they were known for being polite and kind to everyone.

Emma was the oldest at age 12. She was considered the strongest of them and very smart. Lauren was the middle sister at age 9. She was rather quiet, but considered the most clever amongst the three of them. And little Anna, age 6, her strength was having the ability to make anyone laugh.

Each Saturday morning when the sisters awoke, they would rush to wash, and dress, all the while enjoying the sweet smell of freshly baking bread, being prepared in their mother Rachel's kitchen. Their mother had ham and eggs on fresh sour-dough bread waiting for them by the time they made it downstairs into the kitchen. They each greeted their mother with a warm hug and a thank you for their breakfast. And each girl was rewarded with a kiss on the top of her head from their loving mother.

They sat together happily and enjoyed their breakfast at their large kitchen table. After finishing, Emma cleared the plates, Lauren cleared the glasses and Anna cleared the silverware. They had long-since been taught to tidy up after themselves. They had been taught the importance of sharing and they never took the last piece of anything without first asking everyone else present if they would like to share the last piece with them. Their mother was so very proud of them. "What good girls I have." Their mother said, smiling at them.

"Is it ready yet?" Anna asked her mother impatiently.

Her mother replied, "Let me test it. Yes. Yes, I believe it is ready."

The girls had to wait until their mother told them that the freshly baked bread was cool enough. Then they helped her to remove the bread from each pan. They wrapped up two loaves, each in its own clean white-linen cloth, to keep them both warm. One loaf was sour-dough bread, used for making sandwiches; and the other was banana-nut bread. Their mother Rachel also handed them two ham and egg sandwiches on freshly made sour-dough bread and a thermos full of coffee. Emma placed the two loaves of bread, the two sandwiches and the coffee thermos in a basket which Lauren held ready and waiting for her. Anna supervised the entire process, all the while smacking her lips at the prospect of enjoying a piece of sweet banana-nut bread very soon.

It was time to bring their mother's freshly baked goods over to Mrs. Hickey's cottage. The girls had known Mrs. Hickey all of their lives. She was their closest neighbor. She lived in a very handsome stone cottage on the far side of their father Simon's land, about a mile away.

They kissed their mother Rachel goodbye and began their journey. Emma and Lauren each held a handle of the basket as they began their walk across the fields towards Mrs. Hickey's cottage. Anna walked ahead of them. It was her job to pick a pretty bouquet of yellow flowers that grew wild in the field between their two homes. By the time they were half-way there, they could see their father Simon out watering his crops in the farthest field, which was now just a short distance away. They called out to him and waved as they drew near. He stopped watering his crops and came to hug each of his pretty daughters.

Emma and Lauren unpacked the two ham and egg sandwiches and the thermos full of coffee. Those items had been packed for their father to enjoy. Anna handed one freshly picked yellow flower into her father Simon's hand. He thanked them all, kissed each one on the cheek and walked with them on their journey as far as the old stump at the edge of the field he was watering. He dragged the watering hose over with him and used it to wash his hands well. There he sat down on the old stump to enjoy the delicious breakfast that his lovely wife Rachel had prepared for him and his three beautiful daughters had delivered to him. How fortunate he was to have such a family.

Onwards the girls went. Anna had picked a nice-sized bouquet by the time they had arrived at Mrs. Hickey's front door. They called out as they walked up to the front door to let her know they had arrived. Mrs. Hickey smiled a big hello as she opened the front door even before the girls had a chance to knock, and she welcomed them inside, "Come in girls. Come in. It's always delightful to see you."

Anna reached up and handed Mrs. Hickey the freshly picked yellow flowers. Even though she received them every week, Mrs. Hickey exclaimed, as if for the first time, "How beautiful they are, Anna. And aren't you just so thoughtful. What a lovely thing to do. Thank you for thinking of me. I should have a vase for them right over here." She filled the vase with water, put the yellow flowers in it, arranged them, and set the vase on the windowsill for all to see. Anna beamed that her gift had been so well received.

Emma and Lauren put their basket on Mrs. Hickey's kitchen table and began to unpack it. They put the two wrapped loaves on the table, closed up the basket and put it by the door so that they would not forget it when they left. Mrs. Hickey invited the girls to stay for a cup of tea. And to Anna's delight, Mrs. Hickey gladly shared their mother's banana-nut bread with them. Anna clapped as a big slice of banana-nut bread was put in front of each of them.

Over tea and bread, the girls shared with Mrs. Hickey all that was new at school, with their friends and at home with their parents. Once the banana-nut bread had been devoured and the tea sipped, the best part of the visit began. The girls always felt that best of all about visiting with Mrs. Hickey, were her stories.

Every week Mrs. Hickey would begin a new tale. And each week the girls were coaxed into including themselves in the tale. And to make them more fun and fascinating, Mrs. Hickey encouraged them to add their own twists and turns to the story no matter how preposterous their ideas may seem. It made it all the more fun.

So Mrs. Hickey began a new tale as she always did, "Once upon a time, in a country called England, there lived three beautiful, little sisters named: Emma, Lauren and Anna. The three sisters were known for being smart, clever and funny, but above all, they were known for being polite and kind to everyone."

"Emma was the oldest at age 12. She was considered the strongest of them and very smart. Lauren was the middle sister at age 9. She was rather quiet, but considered the most clever amongst the three of them. And little Anna, age 6, her strength was having the ability to make anyone laugh."

Mrs. Hickey paused, and Emma chimed right in, "They went to visit their friend, Mrs. Hickey and enjoyed some banana-nut bread and tea with her."

Lauren continued, "And on their way home a dragon jumped out in front of them."

Emma spoke up again, "Emma immediately stepped in front of her two younger sisters to protect them. After all she was the oldest and the strongest. And she shouted at the dragon, 'Be gone dragon. Let us pass.'"

Anna added, "But Mrs. Hickey was really a good fairy godmother who gave them a magic shield to protect them from the dragon's fire."

Emma interrupted with, "Oooooh, that's good Anna. Ya. And so Emma reached into the basket that they carried the bread in, and took out the magic shield and protected her sisters from the fire-breathing dragon."

Lauren chimed in again, "Okay…but how do we get rid of the dragon?"

Mrs. Hickey smiled and said to Lauren, "How would you put out a fire, if you saw one?"

And clever little Lauren replied without hesitation, "With water. Of course! Using the shield to protect us, we backed up to where Daddy left the hose to water his crops."

Lauren paused and then more emphatically said, "And Lauren turned the hose on full blast and sprayed that old dragon right in the mouth!"

Mrs. Hickey exclaimed, "You are the clever one, Lauren!'

And Emma added, "And all the dragon could breathe out was smoke." All three girls laughed at the image of this.

Anna continued on with the story, "But the dragon still blocked our way and wouldn't let us pass. So Emma backed us up to the edge of the cliff, protecting all of us with the shield. And then Anna stepped forward and told a joke."

Emma laughed and said, "It had better be a really good joke Anna, or you are going to get our behinds cooked!!'

Anna just rolled her eyes and stated, "I only tell really good jokes!"

The Anna in their story said to the dragon, "What fast-food do sea monsters eat?" She waited and then said, "Fish and Ships."

The dragon laughed so hard that he fell over the edge of the cliff. The three girls looked down over the edge and were glad to see that the dragon had landed unharmed, way down at the bottom. He stood up and held his belly, still laughing hard at Anna's joke.

"See." Said Anna triumphantly. All three girls and Mrs. Hickey laughed.

Mrs. Hickey concluded, "So because of Emma's quick thinking and strength to use the shield to protect them with; and Lauren's clever idea of how to put out the dragon's fire and Anna's very funny joke which moved the dragon out of their way without harming it; because they had all worked together, they had beaten the dragon."

Anna spoke up, "And they lived happily ever after for another week until they visited their friend Mrs. Hickey again".

Lauren added, "When they would live another adventure.

And Emma added, "Together!'

All three girls clapped and cheered.

Mrs. Hickey smiled and applauded too. "Very good girls. Very good indeed!"

She continued, "You all know the three rules that I always tell you to live by."

Little Anna recited them without hesitation, "Be kind. Be polite. And think for your self." She smiled up at Mrs. Hickey when she had finished and was rewarded with applause, "Excellent Anna."

"I know you girls are kind. You always take the time to come see me on your busy Saturdays. And I know you girls are polite. You always say please and thank you and you ask permission to do things. And every week that you come here to visit with me, I can see how much you think for yourselves by the stories we tell. You each add your own point of view; your own piece of the story."

Each of the girls beamed with joy and pride. Mrs. Hickey always made them feel so smart and loved.

Another Saturday with Mrs. Hickey had come to an end. Another adventure had been told and the three sisters had been victorious.

With smiles on their faces, Mrs. Hickey thanked the girls again for coming to visit her.

"Can we come see you again next week, Mrs. Hickey?" Emma asked.

"And make up another adventure with you?" Lauren asked.

"Of course, my dears. I would love to live through another adventure with you." Said Mrs. Hickey.

Anna stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Mrs. Hickey's waist. "I love you, Mrs. Hickey."

With tears in her eyes at the lovely, heart-felt gesture from the pretty little girl, Mrs. Hickey hugged Anna, Lauren and Emma to her and said, "I love you girls too. Very, very much."

And with that the girls skipped happily to the front door where Emma remembered to pick up the bread basket.

"Bye Mrs. Hickey. See you next week," Called out Emma as she stepped out the front door.

"Bye." Said Lauren.

"Bye." Said Anna.

And off they walked back to their happy home and loving parents. They talked about their adventure with the dragon all the way home, complimenting one another for the ideas that each one had added to the overall story.

On the walk home they remembered to each pick a big bouquet of yellow flowers to give to their mother. When they arrived home, their mother was happy to hear about their newest adventure with Mrs. Hickey; and she was delighted with the flowers that her lovely daughters had picked for her.

Life was good. They were three beautiful sisters, strong, smart, clever, funny, kind and polite. They were loved by their mother, Rachel and loved by their father, Simon and they loved one another. Life was good in merry old England for Emma, Lauren and Anna. Life was very good indeed.

THE END

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