I glanced at Miranda, and when I did, she gave me a little eyebrow raise. I think we were both thinking the same thing—Dad actually has plans!
“Can we make cookies again tomorrow morning to take along?” Miranda asked.
He shook his head. “No. Absolutely not.” Then he grinned. “Are you kidding? When have I ever said no to cookies?”
“Miranda,” I said, “I just had the best idea. Could you make some cookies for my booth at the arts and craft fair? Maybe I could do an incentive, like buy a painting, get two free cookies.”
“You’re not going to need cookies to sell your paintings, Pooh,” she replied.
“Juliet, that reminds me. I want you to know, I’m planning on coming,” Dad said.
I had told him about the fair on the phone when we’d talked last, but I’d never imagined he might want to come.
“You don’t have to,” I said.
“I know, but I want to,” he said. “This is a big deal and I want to be there to support you.”
“That’s nice of you, but …”
“But what?” he asked. His face drooped. “You don’t want me to come?”
“No,” I said. “It’s not that, it’s just … I may not sell anything. Like, it could be a total failure.”
“It won’t be a total failure,” he said. “How could it be? Your art is really good, and you’ve been working at it for a long time.”
“I know, but there’s no guarantee,” I said.
“There never is,” he said. “That’s life. You do your best and see what happens. Anyway, none of that matters and I want to be there. Okay?”
“Okay.”
He smiled. “Good.”
We started eating our salads and then Miranda’s phone buzzed. “I’m going to eat and then hang out with April for a while, if that’s okay,” she told us.
“Sure,” Dad said. He looked at me. “Inca around this weekend?”
“No,” I said. “She’s in Santa Monica with her family.”
Dad grabbed some plates and dished up slices of pizza for us. “I’m sorry you won’t get to see her.”
“Maybe next time,” I said.
“Want me to ask her if she’d like to come along with me to the fair?” Dad asked.
“No,” I said. “That’s a long way to go just to see my little booth. And it might get boring, hanging out there for hours.”
“Well, think on it some more,” Dad said. “You might change your mind. And if you do, I’m happy to help get her there if I can.”
“Can you help get me there?” I asked.
He looked at me, confused. “What do you mean?”
“She’s nervous, that’s all,” Miranda said.
Ten more paintings to go. And then I had to cross my fingers that twenty-five people would be interested in buying art made by an eleven-year-old.
“If it makes you feel any better,” Dad said, “the zoo has started having certain animals walk through paint and then they sell those paintings to the public. They sell out every time we offer them. The ones by the raccoons are especially popular.”
That did not make me feel better. Actually, whoever came up with that idea was a genius. If I didn’t hate lying so much, I could tell people that my paintings were done by squirrel monkeys, deep in the tropical rain forest. Whether they were gorgeous or super-duper ugly, it wouldn’t matter. They’d sell out for sure.
If only I could sell artwork done by
* Mermaids
* Unicorns
* Aliens
* Fairies
* Superheroes
* Leprechauns
* Wizards
* Witches
* Bigfoot
* Vincent van Gogh
When I got home Sunday evening, I was getting ready to do a load of laundry when Emma texted me.
You’re not going to believe this. No one has claimed the dog, so we may get to bring him home.
I texted back: That’s so exciting! But what about the allergies?
She replied: Dad thinks it might be part poodle, which means it could be hypoallergenic. He and my brother didn’t have an allergic reaction to the dog when they took him to the shelter. Anyway, we’re going to go after school tomorrow and make sure. Wanna go with us?
I told her I’d love to and then went back to collecting laundry from my mom and my sister. Mom was in her bed, reading a book with Casper curled up next to her. She looked up when I came in.
“Oh, thanks, Juju Bean,” she said as she set her book down. “If you’d like, I can put the clothes in the dryer so you don’t have to wait up.”
“It’s not that late,” I told her as I set the basket down and sat on the edge of the bed to pet Casper. “I was going to do a painting before I go to bed anyway.”
“Are you sure?” Mom asked. “It’s a school night.”
“We all slept in this morning, so I’m not that tired. Besides, I don’t have much time left, Mom.”
“It’s going to be fine,” she said.
“Hopefully.” I paused. “You know, this whole thing is weird.”
“What? What do you mean?”
“I mean, part of my brain screams at me to work faster and make more paintings. Make as many as I can because the more I have, the more I can sell. But the other part of my brain screams that none of it matters anyway because I’m not going to sell a single one.”
“Honey, you’ll sell some. I know you will. You’re too talented not to.”
I rolled my eyes. “Okay, whatever. You’re my mom. Of course you’re going to say that.
“But it’s true,” she said. “You’ll see.”
“Yep. We’ll see.”
She smiled. “Your dad texted me and said you guys had a really nice time this weekend. That makes me happy. With time, everything gets easier, doesn’t it?”
“I guess so. Oh, I just remembered, can I go with Emma and her dad to the animal shelter tomorrow after school? They found a stray dog a few weeks ago and no one’s claimed it, so they might adopt it.”
“Wow,” she said. “That’s exciting. Yes, that’s fine. Just don’t get any ideas, okay?” Now she started petting Casper. He’s pretty much irresistible that way. “Not sure our favorite kitty would like sharing our house with another four-legged friend.”
“I don’t want a dog, but you know what I wish I could do?”
“What?”
“I wish I could bring home a cat for Carmen and Oscar. They really want one. I guess their mom worries about the cost, though.”
Mom nodded. “It’s one more mouth to feed, sweetie. Even if it’s a tiny mouth. And on top of the daily care, there are veterinary visits, too, for vaccinations and all those other necessary things it takes to keep an animal healthy. It’s nice that she’s thought about it and knows it’s not a good decision for their family right now. Some people jump in without thinking things through and that’s how shelters get so overcrowded with animals no one wants.”
I stood up. “But that’s the thing, Mom. There are so many animals that need homes. Isn’t there something we can do? Some way we can help them? You’re a vet, it seems like you should be able to think of something.”
She kept petting Casper and he started purring. It was one of my favorite sounds in the world. I went over to her hamper and threw her clothes into the laundry basket. “Hm. I don’t know,” she said. “Let me think on it, okay? And if you come up with any ideas, I’m all ears.”
I used to hate it when my mom or dad said they needed time to think about something. It always seemed like it was just a way to put off saying no for a while longer. But now I understood that sometimes decisions aren’t easy, and taking time to make them is a smart thing to do. Ms. Strickland took time to think about the arts and crafts fair and I had been sure she’d tell us she didn’t want to do it, but then the opposite had happened.
Maybe my
mom or I would come up with some brilliant idea so that Oscar and Carmen could have a cat of their very own. It wouldn’t solve their problems, I knew that. But having a cat to cuddle might make those problems more bearable.
Reasons shelters are the best place to get a pet
* There are usually lots of animals to choose from.
* Every single animal needs a good home and someone to love.
* The animals didn’t ask to be there and how sad is it that they have to live in a small kennel day after day with no real home to call their own?
* My mom told me that puppies at pet stores are often from puppy mills where dogs are made to breed over and over again and often live in bad conditions.
* Adult pets are often already trained—so much easier than having to train a puppy or a kitten.
* An animal from a shelter costs a lot less money than one from a pet store or a breeder.
The scruffy dog we’d seen a few weeks ago didn’t look quite so scruffy anymore. They’d given him a bath and brushed him. Maybe they did that in hopes of helping to get him adopted more quickly.
“Is there any way to know what kind he is?” Rick asked the volunteer, Shelly, who had brought the dog out to a meet-and-greet spot the shelter had for this kind of thing. All of the volunteers wore blue vests with a name tag; that’s how I knew her name.
“We had a veterinarian examine him after you brought him in,” Shelly said as she read notes on a clipboard she held. “He’s in excellent health, has been neutered, no chip, as you already know, and we believe he’s a labradoodle, approximately four years old.”
“A cross between a Lab and a poodle?” Emma’s dad asked.
“That’s correct,” Shelly said.
Emma kneeled down and the dog wiggled its way to her, where he tried to kiss her face over and over again. Emma squealed as she tried to keep her face away from his tongue while attempting to pet him. The dog seemed to really love her.
“Oh, Dad,” Emma said as she plopped onto the floor with her legs out in front of her, allowing the dog to jump into her lap. “Can we take him home? Please?”
Lance sat down next to Emma. The dog immediately went to him and tried to give him a bunch of love just like he’d done with Emma.
“I can’t believe no one came looking for him,” Emma said. “He seems so sweet.”
“It’s hard to know what might have happened,” Shelly said. “Sometimes people have to move and they can’t take their pets with them. Sometimes a dog runs away from a bad living situation and the owners don’t care enough to go looking for him. It’s just hard to say.”
While Emma and Lance continued their lovefest with their four-legged friend, I figured this was my chance to find out more about the cats at the shelter. “How many cats do you have right now?”
“I’m not sure of the exact number,” Shelly said, “but over twenty. Are you looking to adopt one?”
“Not for me, but I have a friend who might be interested,” I said. “Would it be all right … I mean, can I see them, please?”
Shelly turned to Emma’s dad. “You folks okay here by yourselves for a few minutes?”
“Absolutely,” Rick said. “We’ll take good care of him.”
Shelly handed Rick the leash and then told me to follow her. We walked down a short hallway and then she opened a door that led into a big room with cages all along the walls. There was another lady with a blue vest holding a black cat and talking to it.
“That’s Midnight,” Shelly said, gesturing at the cat. “He’s a staff favorite. Such a lovebug.”
“And I’m Mel,” the lady holding Midnight said. “Are you looking for a cat for your family?”
“No,” I said. “We already have one. A friend of mine might be interested, though. Do you have any gray ones?”
“We sure do,” Mel said, pointing to a cage close to her. “Right over here. We often don’t know what their names were before they came to us. We call this fine gentleman Dexter.”
I went over to peek in on him. He was curled up on a small blanket and I wanted so badly to reach in and pet him. I think Shelly read my mind. She unlatched the cage door for me and said, “Go ahead and pet him if you’d like. He’s a nice one. Not all of them are, sadly. Makes it a lot harder to find them a home. After all, no one wants to take home a cat who acts like he wants to shred you to pieces when you try to pet him.”
“Hi, Dexter,” I said softly as I stuck my hand in and gently scratched the top of his head in between his ears. He woke up and lifted his head with a small “Mew.”
“How long as he been here?” I asked.
“About a month or so?” Shelly said. “I think? A family found him out in the country, wandering around on their property. He was really skinny. Someone probably dropped him off out there. That happens a lot.”
“That’s so sad,” I said.
Dexter stretched out his front legs, yawned, and then stood up, leaning into my hand as he did. I wanted so much to scoop him up into my arms and say, “I’ll take him!” And then knock on Carmen’s door and say, “Surprise!” I could just imagine Carmen and Oscar, jumping up and down and squealing with excitement. They’d be happier than a fat cat sleeping near a window on a sunny day. But as much as I wanted to do that, I knew I couldn’t, because it wasn’t up to me. Their mom had said no, simple as that.
I pulled my arm out and turned to Shelly. “Thanks,” I said. “I should probably get back, in case they’re ready to go.”
“Okay,” Shelly said. “Let’s see if they’ve decided to take that pup home with them.” She stared at me for a moment. Maybe my face looked as sad as I felt. “You all right?”
“I just wish … I wish things were different.”
Wait. What did I just say?
Hadn’t I wished for months that things would go back to the way they used to be? That Mom and Dad were happily married. That we still lived in Bakersfield. That Inca and I were inseparable, like always.
Did I still wish that? Sometimes, I guess. But I think I’d finally realized it was a wish that would never come true. And wishes should be possible, shouldn’t they? Like, what’s the point of wishing for a million dollars every single day when a million dollars isn’t just going to fall from the sky?
As I thought about my friend and her family and what they were going through, I didn’t want to spend my time wishing for things that were impossible. Not only that, I’d give up every single wish I’d ever had if it would help Carmen.
When Emma and I had thrown our bottles into the ocean, we’d wished that someone would respond. And the best possible thing had happened—we’d become friends with Carmen. And now just about all I wanted in the world was for her to feel safe and happy.
I really wanted to give Carmen and Oscar a cat to love. But I wanted to give them a lot more than that, too.
Shelly put her arm around me and gave me a squeeze. “I’m sorry, hon. I know it’s difficult to leave them behind. Believe me, I’d take each and every one of them home if I could.”
Back out in the meet-and-greet area, Emma and her brother were still on the floor with the dog. When Emma saw me, she said, “Since Lance found him, he decided he should pick the name.”
“Meet Captain Jack Sparrow,” Lance said with a huge grin. “You know, from Pirates of the Caribbean? We’ll call him Jack for short.”
I smiled as I bent down to pet the adorable dog now named Jack. “So I guess that means he’s yours?”
Emma hopped up and grabbed my hands as she jumped up and down. “We get a dog, we get a dog! I’m so happy.” Then she turned around and gave her dad a big hug.
Before we could take him home, though, there was paperwork to fill out and lots of instructions about what they’d need to do and buy to make Jack comfortable in his new home.
“Can you go to the pet store with us?” Emma asked. “You can come home and have dinner with us afterward, if you want.�
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“Sure,” I said. “I’ll text my mom and let her know.”
On the way, Jack sat between Emma and me in the back seat. Emma couldn’t stop smiling. She was so lucky, I thought. If only Carmen could have a little bit of luck, too.
It doesn’t seem fair that …
* some people are born rich and other people are born poor.
* some people get everything they want and other people get very little.
* people with brown or black skin are looked at differently by some people.
* there are so many unwanted pets.
* kids go hungry in the richest country in the world.
* kids are afraid of violence at school and lots of adults don’t seem to care.
* life is unfair. But it is. And I guess the sooner you just accept it, the better?
When I got home, Mom was on the couch, watching a movie. The house smelled good, like chocolate. Is there any better smell in the world? My dad would probably say a fresh-cut lawn. And to that I’d say, “Then you eat your lawn and I’ll eat the chocolate.”
“Did Miranda make something?” I asked Mom.
“Yes,” Mom said as she leaned forward, grabbed the remote off the coffee table, and hit the pause button. “Brownies. You want some?”
“In a little while. Where is she, anyway?”
“In her room, doing homework.” Mom patted the spot next to her. “Did you guys get everything they need for Jack?”
I dropped my backpack on the floor and plopped down on the couch. “Yep. Got him a dog bed and a crate and some toys. Oh, and food, obviously.”
“I’m so happy for them,” Mom said, smiling. “And Jack, too. Especially Jack.”
“I think they’re going to come see you at work,” I said. “Make sure he has all his shots and stuff.”
“Good,” she said. “I can’t wait to meet him.”
“I looked at the cats while we were at the shelter,” I told her. “I found one I think Carmen and Oscar would love.”
Wish on All the Stars Page 10