It’s cold. I thought. Way too cold for a late October Monday morning here in Calistoga. I stood shivering outside my classroom waiting for Mrs. Henry to arrive. I zipped my jacket, flipped my hood onto my head and shoved my hands into my pockets to keep warm. Mrs. Castle's door opened. Out came Mrs. Henry fumbling with her keys to unlock our door. “Come in.” She told me. “It’s frigid out here.” I picked up my backpack and walked inside. I hung it on a hook, then yanked my lunch box out to put it in the lunch bin. The bell rang. Mrs. Henry let in the rest of the waiting students.
There was a note on the board that said, Everyone, take a poem from the pile under this note. This is the poem for the week. I walked to the front of the room and took a paper from the pile. I sat back down and read the title and the first stanza.
Halloween
By Jack Prelutsky
It’s Halloween! It’s Halloween! The moon is full and bright.
All of a sudden Ella (my table-mate and good friend) interrupted my reading and exclaimed excitedly, “You're doing it today!” In the blink of an eye, I was out the door and running. For a second, I had no idea what I was doing, until it came to me. The Pledge! I thought. At the last student council meeting, we made a schedule of who would do the flag salute every Monday morning and when they would do it. I was doing it today! I raced to the office. When I arrived, I stopped for a second to catch my breath. Then, I pulled the door open and walked in. “Um, I am in the student council and I am supposed to do the flag salute today.” I told one of the secretaries, Veronica. She smiled. “It will be in a couple minutes. Have a seat.” she motioned me to the chair and continued typing. A few minutes passed. Then, Mrs. Lamare, the principal walked in. “I hear you are doing the pledge. Come over here.” I walked over to where she was. “This is the intercom,” she explained, pointing to a phone. Next to it was a piece of paper taped to the counter with the pledge and a few other things I had to say. Mrs. Lamare unplugged the wire from the phone, twisted it and plugged it back in. “Are you ready?” she asked me. All of a sudden I wasn’t so sure. My knees felt like Jello, but they held me up. Come on. I thought. The whole school is counting on you. I held my head high enough to show Mrs. Lamare I had confidence and nodded shakily. She pressed a few buttons and handed the phone to me. “Go ahead,” she told me and gave me the thumbs up. I took a deep breath that made my shirt tighten around my chest, and began. “Good morning Calistoga Elementary School. Please stand…” I finished the pledge loud and clear. When I finished. Mrs. Lamare took the phone and welcomed the school to a new week.
I practically skipped my way back to the classroom. I felt my ponytail slap my face as if it were trying to get my attention. When I strode proudly into the classroom, I heard many say “Good job Myka” and “I could never do that!”. I sat down at my desk and finished reading my poem. With no interruptions. None at all.
