Karen's Prize

by Ann M. Martin

  Later, Mommy came to say good night.

  “Am I really a sore winner?” I asked.

  “I’m afraid you have been a little bit,” said Mommy. “It’s nice to win. But winning isn’t everything. Just like losing isn’t everything. You have to try not to be a sore winner or a sore loser.”

  “I’ll try, Mommy,” I said. We gave hugs and kisses. Then Mommy turned out the light.

  I’ll try hard not to be a sore winner, I thought. But I am not going to lose the next contest!

  The Bee Queen

  “I now declare Monday spelling bee day!” I said.

  “Yea!” cried Nancy and Hannie.

  Today was the spelling bee for the winners of each first-, second-, and third-grade class at Stoneybrook Academy.

  Ms. Colman had told us on Friday that the spelling bee would be in the school auditorium. The room is blue. So this is what I wore:

  — my blue-and-green-plaid skirt

  — my blue sweater

  — the plaid hair bow that Mommy gave me for my birthday.

  I knew I looked great. Maybe even as great as Pamela, who gets dressed up all the time. But I still felt a little nervous. I had butterflies in my stomach. After all, everyone from three whole grades would be watching.

  I decided to have a little talk with myself. Karen, you look great. You studied hard. Your best friends, Hannie and Nancy, are going to cheer you on. You are going to win this spelling bee! You are going to be the junior state champion!

  “Spellers onstage,” said Ms. Colman. “We are about to begin.” (I was glad Ms. Colman was going to give us our words.)

  This time I was the fourth speller. I was glad because the first three words were hard. But no one made any mistakes. These spellers were really good. Maybe even as good as me. But I was still going to win. Just as long as I didn’t get careless.

  “Karen, your word is believe,” said Ms. Colman.

  I knew that word. Seth had said, “You may not believe it, but there is a lie right in the middle of believe.”

  “Believe. B-E-L-I-E-V-E. Believe,” I said.

  “Yea!” called Nancy and Hannie.

  “Okay, boys and girls. Please save your cheers for the end of the spelling bee,” said Ms. Colman.

  My stomach was starting to feel better. I could tell this was going to be easy, after all.

  Before I knew it, two kids were out and my turn had come again. Then five kids were out. Then seven. Then just three of us were left.

  “Karen, please spell chimney,” said Ms. Colman.

  Uh-oh. That was a hard one. When I was studying, I kept putting in an extra e. But where? I had to think.

  “Karen? Did you hear the word?” asked Ms. Colman.

  “Yes,” I said. I looked at Hannie. She smiled at me. I smiled back. I was ready to spell the word.

  “Chimney. C-H-I-M …” (Was this where the e went? I looked at Nancy. Then I remembered. “The m and the n are together, just like in the alphabet,” she had said.)

  “… N-E-Y! Chimney!” I said loud and clear.

  “That is correct,” said Ms. Colman.

  Then, guess what! The next two kids missed their words! I was the winner! Yea!

  I got a gift certificate for the Tall Tales Bookstore. And, I was going to be in the next spelling bee with all the other junior winners from the Stoneybrook schools.

  “I’m the Queen Bee!” I cried when we got back to class. “Get it? The Queen Bee? The best?”

  “No,” said Pamela. “You’re only the bee queen.”

  “She is the Queen Bee,” said Hannie, coming to my rescue.

  “You’re just jealous of her,” said Nancy.

  Pamela did not answer. She sat at her desk.

  “Karen’s being a show-off,” said Jannie and Leslie. And they went to their desks, just like Pamela.

  “We are very proud of you,” said Ms. Colman. “Let’s all give Karen a round of applause.”

  Pamela, Jannie, and Leslie sat with their hands folded.

  But who cared? Most of the kids clapped. And Ricky Torres even slipped me a note. Here’s what it said:

  “Thank You for This Award!”

  Boo. Boo. Boo! It was Tuesday. No spelling bee.

  But I ended up having a good day anyway. Before we went home, Ms. Colman took me aside to tell me about the next spelling bee. I felt so, so important. I hoped Pamela was watching.

  “The spelling bee will be held in two weeks, on a Monday night,” said Ms. Colman. “It will be in the Stoneybrook High School auditorium. You may invite all the members of your family.” (I think she said that on purpose because she knows how many members of my family there are.)

  As soon as I got home, I showed Mommy the note.

  “May I call Daddy and Kristy now?” I asked.

  “You may call them after dinner,” said Mommy.

  I had a snack with Andrew. Then I went up to my room. I had important things to do. I closed the door. I took Emily Junior, my rat, out of her cage.

  “How was your day?” I asked.

  Sniff, sniff, sniff. Emily Junior doesn’t talk, of course. Sometimes she races around. Sometimes she jumps into my shoe for a nap. That’s what she did now.

  Goosie, my stuffed cat, is always ready for a talk.

  “I’ve got to decide what to wear for my big Monday night, Goosie. Will you help me?” I asked.

  I made Goosie nod his head. Then I held him up to my ear.

  “What color is the high school auditorium?” I repeated. Uh-oh. I forgot to ask. Maybe I should call Ms. Colman, I thought.

  “What, Goosie? I don’t have to match the room? I should just wear my birthday hair bow? You’re right! It was good luck.”

  The hair bow was green, red, and blue. I could wear my red sweater and my red-and-blue-plaid skirt.

  “Thanks, Goosie!” I said. “Now I better start planning my acceptance speech. I don’t want to look like a dweeb when I win!”

  I sat Goosie and some of my other toys up on the dresser.

  “You are the audience,” I said.

  Emily Junior was still sleeping in my shoe. I put her on my desk.

  “You are Ms. Colman. You have just handed me my award,” I said.

  I put on my hair ribbon. Then I took a deep bow and said, “Thank you for this award! I am gigundo honored and proud to be the best junior speller in the state of Connecticut. As we all know, I am probably the best junior speller in the whole wide world!”

  That should do it, I thought.

  I waved to my audience and took one last bow.

  Television!

  M-O-N-D-A-Y spells spelling day! The big spelling bee at Stoneybrook High was going to be tonight at seven-thirty. I decided to spell my way through the whole day!

  “H-I, H-A-N-N-I-E!” I said when I saw Hannie. (I had already spelled hi to Nancy. Mommy had driven us to school.)

  “H-I, K-A — Oh, forget it,” said Hannie, giggling. “You’re the one in the spelling bee. Not me.”

  “Please be seated everyone,” said Ms. Colman. After attendance, Ms. Colman made the morning announcements. She saved the best for last.

  “I have just learned that the state spelling bee will be televised locally. That means if Karen wins tonight and goes on to the next contest, she might get to be on local TV.”

  I almost fell off my chair!

  “Can you believe it?” I said to Ricky. (Ricky sits in the front row next to me. That’s because we both wear glasses. We can see better up front.)

  I got up and turned to look at Hannie and Nancy. (They sit in the back of the room. They do not wear glasses.) We gave each other the thumbs-up sign.

  All morning I studied my words — no matter what everyone else was studying.

  “If John has four berries, in his basket, and Jill has six berries, how many berries do John and Jill have together?” asked Ms. Colman.

  I knew the answer. It was ten. But ten wasn’t on my list. So when Ms. Colman called on me I said, �
�E-L-E-V-E-N, take away one. That’s ten!”

  We studied geography later on. Ms. Colman pointed to a map.

  “Who can tell me the name of this river?” she asked. I waved my arm like crazy. Ms. Colman called on me.

  “M-I-S-S-I-S-S-I-P-P-I! It’s the Mississippi River!” I said.

  I heard someone groaning on the other side of the room. I was sure I knew who it was. Her initials are P. H.

  At recess, I practiced for my television debut. First I had to get my walk just right. This is what I did:

  I threw back my head.

  I took long, slow steps.

  I twirled around to face my audience.

  Then I smiled a great, big winner’s smile!

  “Thank you, thank you, thank you,” I said to everyone on the playground. “It is so good to know that the whole state of Connecticut is watching me, the Queen Bee, on television tonight!”

  “That’s bee queen. And you haven’t won yet. You could lose, you know,” said Pamela.

  “Why would I lose?” I said. “I don’t plan on taking a Stupid Pill. So, L-A-D-I-E-S and G-E-N-T-L-E-M-E-N, thank you, thank you, thank you!”

  Pamela stomped off to the other side of the yard. Jannie, Leslie, and a few other kids followed her.

  That was okay. The Queen Bee — that’s me — still had Hannie, Nancy, Ricky, and a few other kids on her side.

  P-E-S-T

  “This is it, Goosie,” I said. “In a few hours, I will be onstage at Stoneybrook High School, spelling words.”

  Emily Junior rattled around in her cage.

  “I’m sorry, Emily,” I said. “I can’t take you with me. But I’ll tell you all about it when I get back.”

  It was time to get dressed. But first I had to do one thing. I had to make sure Daddy, Kristy, and everyone at the big house were coming to see me.

  “Mommy, may I call Daddy?” I asked.

  “You called him this afternoon,” said Mommy.

  “I need to call him again,” I replied.

  “All right, Karen. You may call Daddy,” said Mommy.

  “Thanks!” I cried. Nannie answered the phone. She said everyone was looking forward to seeing me later. I asked to talk to Daddy anyway.

  “Hi, Daddy!” I said. “Are you coming tonight? Is everyone coming?”

  “We’ll all be there, Karen,” said Daddy. “Even Emily Michelle.”

  “Well, I’ve got to get ready now, Daddy. See you later!” I said. I hung up the phone. I ran upstairs to get dressed.

  I had changed my mind about what to wear. I had decided to wear pink. That was a happy color. I put on my pink shirt, pink skirt, pink socks, and pink hair bow. (I put my good luck birthday hair bow in my pocket.) Then I showed Mommy and Seth what I was wearing.

  “You look lovely!” they said.

  But when I saw myself in their mirror, I was not sure. I ran back to my room. This time I tried blue. Everything blue.

  I showed Mommy and Seth again.

  “What was the matter with the first outfit?” asked Seth.

  “I’m not sure,” I said. “Do you like this one?”

  “Yes, I do,” said Seth. “I like it very much.”

  “It’s very nice,” said Mommy.

  But I still was not sure. Five outfits later, I was back to pink. I asked Mommy if I could call Daddy one more time.

  “He told you he was coming, didn’t he?” asked Mommy.

  “Yes. But I have to tell him what I’m wearing, so he’ll recognize me,” I said. (I knew he would recognize me. But I needed to make sure nothing had happened since I had spoken to him.)

  “All right. But this is the last time,” said Mommy.

  Daddy said pink sounded great.

  I decided Andrew might need help getting dressed. It was important for him to look good. They might ask him to stand and take a bow when I won the contest.

  “I don’t need your help. Mommy showed me what to wear already,” said Andrew.

  I looked at the clothes on the bed. The shirt had a teeny tiny speck on it.

  “That shirt has a big spot on it. I’ll help you pick something else while you give me words,” I said.

  “OK!” said Andrew. “Spell spell.”

  “That’s too easy. Give me something harder,” I said.

  “Rock! That’s hard!” said Andrew. He threw himself on the bed, laughing.

  I could see he was not going to be much help. So I picked out a new shirt for him and then found Mommy and Seth again.

  “I need words,” I said. I handed Seth the list.

  “All right,” said Seth. “Spell mountain.”

  “Mountain. M-O-U-N-T-A-I-N. Mountain,” I said. “Now it’s your turn, Mommy.”

  Mommy looked at the list. “Spell joyous,” she said.

  “Joyous. J-O-Y-O-U-S. Joyous,” I said.

  Andrew came into the room.

  “How do I look?” he asked.

  “Not now, Andrew. I’m spelling words,” I said.

  Andrew glared at me. “Mommy, how do you spell pest?” he asked.

  “Pest. P-E-S-T. Pest,” said Mommy.

  Andrew and I stuck our tongues out at each other.

  “It’s time to go,” said Seth.

  We put on our coats and headed for the car.

  By the time we were buckled up, I had already spelled automobile, driveway, gasoline, engine, and highway.

  Karen Brewer, Star

  “I have never seen such a gigundo building!” I said.

  “You’ve seen Stoneybrook High lots of times, Karen,” said Seth. “I think it just looks bigger because you’re nervous.”

  “Nervous? N-E-R-V-O-U-S? Nervous? Me? No way!” I said.

  I was excited. I could hardly wait for the spelling bee to begin.

  As soon as we found the auditorium, Ms. Colman waved to me. I had to go backstage with the other junior spelling bee winners right away. I was feeling important already!

  “This is Mr. Monroe, a teacher from one of the other schools,” said Ms. Colman. “He will be giving you your spelling words. Good luck, Karen!”

  “If everyone will gather round me,” said Mr. Monroe, “I will explain the rules.”

  I moved in closer so I could hear. I also wanted to check out the other kids. I could not tell much. They did not look especially smart, or dumb, or anything. Most everyone looked scared, though. I wondered if I did, too.

  “This is how the spelling bee works,” said Mr. Monroe. “I will give you a word. You say the word, spell it, then say it again. When you have finished spelling the word, I will tell you if you have spelled it correctly. If you have, remain standing where you are. If you have not spelled the word correctly, I will ask you to sit down. The next speller will have a chance to spell the same word. Any questions?”

  No one had a question. Mr. Monroe gave us name tags. Then we went out onstage. The spelling bee was about to begin.

  Luckily, Mr. Monroe had a few words to say to the audience first. That gave me time to look for my families.

  I found Mommy, Seth, and Andrew right away. They saw me and waved. But I could not find Daddy and the rest of my big-house family. My stomach flip-flopped. Then I saw Kristy waving. they were all there. Eight of them in one row!

  “If the spellers are ready, we will begin now,” said Mr. Monroe. “The first word is for you, Mark. Please spell arithmetic.”

  “Arithmetic. A-R-I-T-H-M-E-T-I-C. Arithmetic,” said Mark.

  “That is correct,” said Mr. Monroe. “Paula, please spell umbrella.”

  “Umbrella. U-M-B-R-E-L-L-A. Umbrella,” said Paula.

  Guess whose turn was next. Mine. I was really nervous.

  “Karen, please spell separate,” said Mr. Monroe.

  I thought, There is a rat in the middle of separate.

  I spelled it. “Separate. S-E-P-A-R-A-T-E. Separate.”

  “That is correct,” said Mr. Monroe.

  I saw my families beaming. What a relief! Now that my first turn was over
, maybe I could have some fun.

  Mr. Monroe gave us more words. We spelled them. When kids got words wrong, they sat down. Soon just four of us were left.

  “Lindsay, please spell handkerchief,” said Mr. Monroe.

  “Handkerchief. H-A-N-K-E-R-C-H-I-E-F. Handkerchief,” said Lindsay.

  “I’m sorry. That is not correct,” said Mr. Monroe. “Mark, please spell handkerchief.”

  “Handkerchief. H-A-N-D-K-E-R-C-H-E-I-F. Handkerchief,” said Mark.

  “I am sorry. That is not correct,” said Mr. Monroe. “Paula, please spell handkerchief.”

  “Handkerchief. H-A-N-D-K-E-C-H-I-E-F. Handkerchief,” said Paula.

  “I am sorry. That is not correct,” said Mr. Monroe. “Karen, please spell handkerchief.”

  “Handkerchief. H-A-N-D-K-E-R-C-H-I-E-F. Handkerchief,” I said.

  “Karen, that is correct. That makes you the winner of the Stoneybrook Junior Spelling Bee!” said Mr. Monroe.

  I heard everyone clapping while Mr. Monroe shook my hand and gave me a $100 saving bond. “Use it well,” he said.

  I smiled at Mommy and Seth and Andrew and Daddy and Elizabeth and Kristy and Sam and Charlie and David Michael and Nanny and Emily Michelle! Yea! Hurray!

  Someone closed the curtains before I had a chance to make my acceptance speech.

  But guess what! An eighth-grader from Stoneybrook Academy interviewed me for the school paper. She even took my picture.

  I was a star!

  The Front Page

  “ ’Bye, Mrs. Dawes! Thank you for the ride!” I called. I raced out of Nancy’s mom’s car and into school.

  “Wait for me!” called Nancy.

  I couldn’t wait. It was Tuesday. The day the Stoneybrook Academy News came out. I ran into the classroom.

  I didn’t see the paper, but I knew it would get there soon.

  Ms. Colman was taking attendance when there was a knock at the door. An eighth-grader was carrying a stack of papers. He dropped them on Ms. Colman’s desk. Since I sit in the first row, I got to see the front page.

  So did Ms. Colman. “Congratulations, Karen,” she said. “You may take the first copy.”