ng and wondering.

THE STRAWBERRY SOCIABLE

It's awfully hard to go to sleep when you're wondering all the time
what you're going to do when you wake up. But Mary Jane finally did
drop off to sleep--perhaps the fact that Grandmother pulled down the
shades helped. However it was, Mary Jane slept soundly and had to be
called twice when it was time to get up. She blinked open her eyes and
was just trying to guess if Grandfather had gone down to his breakfast
when Grandmother called, "do you wear a sash with your best dress,
dear?"

That waked her in a jiffy and immediately she remembered about the
surprise that was to come and that she was to wear her best dress and
biggest ribbon.

"Yes, Grandmother, my pink sash," she answered, and she tossed off the
light quilt Grandmother had spread over her and ran into the next room.
Grandmother was laying out her own best dress and shoes on her bed. It
was the first time Mary Jane had known of her wearing them and she
guessed right away that something pretty important must be going on.

"What's the surprise, Grandmother?" she asked eagerly, "can you tell me
now?"

"Surely dear," replied Grandmother kindly, "I'd have told you before
only I was afraid you'd stay awake and ask questions. To-night is the
annual strawberry sociable of the village church and I thought maybe
you'd like to go. Your grandfather and I always attend and I think
you're old enough to go--especially now, as you've had such a good
sleep."

Mary Jane stared at her grandmother as though she didn't understand a
word she had said.

"What is it--a strawberry sociable?" she asked.

Grandmother bent down and kissed her. "I forget my little city girl
don't know all our ways," she said, smilingly. "A strawberry sociable
is our big time of the year. We haven't taken you to our church yet,
dear, because your grandfather and I don't go as regularly in the
summer as we do in the winter, but maybe you've noticed it as we've
driven through the village. The little white church with the steeple
and the green blinds?"

"Yes," said Mary Jane, nodding eagerly, "I've seen it. The one with
the big yard."

"That's the one," said Grandmother, "and it's that yard we're going to
this evening. All our people have fine gardens and a good many of us
have berry patches. We save our finest berries and take them to the
church to-night for the sociable. The folks who have no berries take
cake and in that way ev