me first on the program. That was in order to
allow the parents of the kindergartners to take them home early if
they so wished.

Andy had looked a bit pale when he left his family.

"I hope he's not so excited he'll throw up," Cathy said worriedly. "He
looks pretty scared."

"Scared? Andy scared? Of course he's not scared," said Jerry stoutly,
though he knew very well that Andy really was scared and was only
defending him.

"Anyway, he knows his piece," said Cathy. "He said it over to me three
times before dinner and didn't make a mistake."

Before the curtain went up, Miss Kurtz, the principal, made a short
speech about giving parents an opportunity to share in the school
activities of their children. She spoke about the importance of
creativity, a long word Jerry did not quite understand, but thought
meant making up things. Then the curtain rose and there was the bears'
house. Only it didn't have any upstairs. Goldilocks wasn't there yet
but the porridge was on the table in a big, a medium, and a tiny bowl.
And here came Andy, walking stiffly to the front of the stage. He
looked very small.

Jerry saw that his father and mother looked anxious, as anxious as
Jerry felt. "Come on, Andy. Say it and get it over with," Jerry
muttered.

"Sh-sh," said Cathy.

The audience looked at Andy and Andy looked at them. Seconds passed.
Andy did not utter a word.

From behind scenes Miss Prouty prompted him.

"We welcome you, dear parents," she said in a voice barely audible to
the audience.

Andy's lips did not move. His face looked frozen in fright. He just
stood there.

Miss Prouty prompted him again. Still Andy did not open his mouth.
Some boy near the back of the hall clapped. That sound seemed to wake
Andy from his trance of fear. He raised his head and gave the audience
a large, beaming smile. Then Andy spoke his piece.

Gene, Gene--had a machine.
Joe, Joe--made it go.
Frank, Frank--turned the crank.
His mother came out and gave him a spank
And threw him over a sandbank.

Andy spoke up nice and loud and then made a bow. Apparently he did not
realize that he had spoken the wrong piece.

The auditorium suddenly rocked with laughter. Miss Prouty shooed Andy
off the stage and apologized for him. Then she spoke the "Dear
parents" poem herself.

Cathy just had time to whisper angrily to Jerry, "It's all your
fault--you taught him that awful rhyme," before Andy came to sit with
his family