I have come home with Clarice and her family to Hurricane Ridge. I like playing with Bob and Carroll and eating the chocolate gravy that Clarice knows how to make. But it is late afternoon now and I am beginning to miss Mom.
I am standing in Clarice’s front yard about half way between their house and the chicken house, looking toward Ragged Ridge. Maybe, I think, I could even see Mom if it weren’t for all the trees. Clarice is nearby. I think because she is taller than me she could see all the way to my house. Clarice says quietly, “Are you homesick?” I’ve heard grownups use that word before, but I didn’t know until now what it meant. I’m embarrassed. But I know Clarice won’t be mean if I tell her I want to go home. “Uh-huh,” I say. Clarice says something else that lets me know she isn’t mad. I’m about to cry, but I feel a little better.
Post Note: I can’t remember for sure if someone took me home that evening. I just remember clearly standing in the yard and that my sister’s words were a comfort to me.