Karen's Magician

by Ann M. Martin

  “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” I said. “If I win the next election, I will try my best to be an excellent class representative.”

  I did it. I had won the election. I had won it honestly, too. I must really be a great campaigner.

  Before I sat down I took a bow.

  More Worries

  I burst into the big house after school.

  “I won! I won!” I cried.

  “That is terrific,” said Daddy.

  “This calls for a celebration,” said Elizabeth.

  I decorated the kitchen with my extra campaign posters. I had extra campaign buttons, too. Everyone got to wear one at dinner.

  While we ate, I told my family about the election.

  “I am proud of you for running an honest campaign,” said Daddy.

  “You deserved to win,” said Kristy.

  For dessert, we had ice cream sundaes. Everyone was having a very good time at my election party. Everyone except Andrew. He looked worried.

  “Do you want to play a game or something?” I said after dinner.

  “No thanks. I am busy thinking,” said Andrew.

  “What are you thinking about?” I asked. (I already knew. But I asked anyway.)

  “I am thinking about my penny,” said Andrew. “I really need to know something. When a penny disappears where does it go?”

  “Maybe we will find the answer in Mr. Wizard’s magic trick set,” I said.

  Andrew had refused to play with the set since we got it. This time he agreed. (That is probably because I was an important elected official now.)

  We went upstairs to the playroom and opened the box.

  “You should wear this hat,” I said.

  I put the black magician’s hat on Andrew’s head.

  Andrew looked through the box. I looked over his shoulder. There were card tricks, floating object tricks, pencil tricks.

  “I see a vanishing penny trick,” I said.

  There was a handkerchief and a plastic penny to practice with.

  I read the instructions. The magician was supposed to hold a penny underneath a handkerchief. The magician’s helper would secretly take the penny away. The magician was supposed to pretend the penny was still there.

  I read the end of the instructions out loud.

  “After your helper has taken the penny, wave your arms in the air. Say, ‘Prest-o! Change-o!’ Flip the handkerchief over. Your audience will be amazed that the penny is gone,” I said.

  “So what?” said Andrew. “Mr. Wizard did not do that trick. He did not have any helpers.”

  “Maybe he did not do this exact trick,” I said. “But this is how he made your penny disappear. It was a trick. That is all.”

  “These are tricks,” said Andrew. “Mr. Wizard is magic.”

  “I give up,” I said. “If you want to think Mr. Wizard is magic, you go ahead. But I am an important elected official. I know better. I know it was a trick.”

  I also knew that Andrew did not believe me.

  Vote 4 Karen

  Before I went to sleep on Wednesday, I got my Vote 4 Karen buttons back from my family. I made a big stack of new posters, too.

  I needed them for my campaign against Edwin Farley. He won the election in Mr. Berger’s class. Now we had to run against each other.

  On Thursday before school started, I asked Hannie and Nancy if they would help me hang my posters.

  “Sure,” said Hannie. “Where do you want them?”

  “Everywhere!” I replied.

  “Is that allowed?” asked Nancy.

  “There is no rule about hanging posters,” I said. “We just have to do it before class starts. Let’s go.”

  By the time class started, Vote 4 Karen posters were hanging everywhere.

  Ms. Colman was not very happy when she saw them.

  “I know you did not break any rules, Karen,” she said. “But I would like you to take some of those posters down.”

  I took down half of the posters. There were still a lot left.

  I was not allowed to campaign again until recess. (Rule number two said no campaigning during class. Boo.)

  When I finished eating, I carried my milk crate out onto the playground. I needed to share my ideas with the kids in Mr. Berger’s class. I needed to make an important speech.

  “Hear ye! Hear ye!” I called. “I, Karen Brewer, won the election in Ms. Colman’s class. Did I run an honest campaign? Yes! Do I have excellent ideas for Fun Night? Yes! Should you vote for me for second-grade representative? Yes, yes, yes!”

  “May I use the crate now?” asked Edwin.

  “Um, I am not finished yet,” I said. “If you want to make a speech, you should get your own milk crate.”

  I knew that was not very nice. But I needed to say a few more things. The only problem was, I could not think of any. So I just stood around for awhile.

  Right after dinner on Thursday night I went upstairs to my room. I wanted to work on my campaign. I could not make any more buttons or posters. I had already spent five dollars.

  “What should I do, Moosie?” I asked. “I know. I will make up a song. That does not cost anything.”

  Writing a campaign song was hard work. I had to write it and rewrite it. Finally it was ready. I sang my song to Moosie.

  Vote for Karen. It is the best thing to do.

  Vote for Karen. Let me represent you.

  Vote for Karen. You will be voting for fun.

  Vote for Karen. Hear me shout out, “I won!”

  I could tell Moosie liked my song a lot. Tomorrow at recess, I would get on my milk crate. I would sing my song to everyone.

  The election was going to be held in the afternoon. I was sure I would win by a landslide.

  The Winner Is …

  I did not get to sing my song on Friday. That is because I had to stay in at recess. Ms. Colman asked me to write one more speech.

  “This will be your last chance to tell everyone why they should vote for you, Karen. If you need my help, just let me know.”

  “Thank you,” I replied. “But I would like to do this by myself.”

  I finished writing just as the kids started coming back from recess. Mr. Berger’s class carried their chairs into Ms. Colman’s room.

  “You can go first, Karen,” said Edwin. “I did not finish my speech yet.”

  I walked to the front of the room. Uh-oh. I had forgotten something. I whispered in Ms. Colman’s ear.

  “No, Karen,” Ms. Colman whispered back. “You do not need to stand on a milk crate. You are fine right where you are.”

  I felt a few butterflies fluttering in my stomach. But they settled down as soon as I started to talk.

  “Hi. I am going to tell you why I think you should vote for me, Karen Brewer.

  “First of all, I love being in second grade. And I am very proud of my school. So if you elect me, I will try my best to do a good job.

  “Second, I have a lot of energy. I know that some people think I have too much energy. But energy is a good thing for a class representative to have.

  “Both little kids and big kids will be on the Fun Night Committee. Sometimes big kids think they know everything. Sometimes they think they do not have to listen to second-graders. It will take a lot of energy to get them to listen.

  “The last thing you should know about me is that I have good ideas about having fun. And I promise I will listen to your ideas too. Thank you.”

  Some of the kids clapped. But not everyone. I guess they were tired from recess.

  “Thank you, Karen,” said Ms. Colman. “You may take your seat. Edwin, would you like to come up now?”

  I could see that most of what he had written down was crossed out. His speech was very short.

  “Hi, my name is Edwin Farley. I promise to do a good job if I am elected. I want to be on the Fun Night Committee because my cousin, who is in fourth grade, is going to be on the committee, too. I think I have good ideas about having fun. Those are the reasons
I think you should vote for me. Thank you.”

  “Thank you, Edwin,” said Mr. Berger. “Now we are going to pass around voting slips. Please write the name of the candidate you choose. Then fold the paper and pass it to the front of the room.”

  Ms. Colman said it would take too long to read the names out loud. So two kids opened the slips of paper and counted the votes. The two kids were Audrey Green and Liddie Yuan. Liddie is in Mr. Berger’s class.

  They wrote the number of votes on a piece of paper and handed them to Ms. Colman.

  “This was a very close race, class,” said Ms. Colman. “Thank you Karen and Edwin for running a good and honest campaign.”

  Did I hear right? Did Ms. Colman say the race was close? I thought almost everyone would vote for me.

  Ms. Colman passed the paper to Mr. Berger.

  “The winner is Karen Brewer. Congratulations, Karen,” said Mr. Berger.

  I turned around and waved to everyone. But I did not get up and take a bow. I did not shout “yippee.”

  I had a feeling some kids in my class had not voted for me this time. I think some kids did not like it when I would not give the milk crate to Edwin. And some kids did not like it when I put up all those posters.

  I guess I had overdone it a little. But at least I had won. I would work hard on the committee. I would make everyone proud.

  The Meeting

  On Monday morning, I woke up extra early.

  “Today is an important day,” I said to Moosie. “This afternoon, I am going to my first Fun Night Committee meeting.”

  I wanted to wear something special. I put on a blue skirt, blue tights, and blue shoes. I put on my blue-and-red-striped sweater. Then I put one red ribbon and one blue ribbon in my hair.

  “That will show them I know how to have fun. Wish me luck, Moosie,” I said.

  The meeting was held after school. There was one representative from every grade. There were two teachers. They were Mr. Berger and Ms. Williams. (Ms. Williams is a fourth-grade teacher.)

  “Fun Night will be held the first week in December,” said Ms. Williams. “We need to decide the kind of entertainment we would like to have. If you have any suggestions, please raise your hand.”

  Two hands shot up right away. The fifth-and sixth-grade representatives already had ideas. I had an idea, too. But I decided to let the big kids talk first.

  “I think we should have kids from our school in the show. We could hold auditions and pick the best performers,” said the fifth-grader.

  “That is a good idea,” said Mr. Berger. “There is a lot of talent in our school. We can have music and dance performances.”

  “And we could have a stand-up comedian,” said the third-grader.

  “Robert, you had your hand raised. What was your idea?” asked Ms. Williams. (Robert was the sixth-grader.)

  “I was going to suggest that we get a professional performer,” said Robert. “People will pay more to see a professional act. And we are trying to raise as much money as we can for the school.”

  “That is good thinking,” said Ms. Williams. “All we have to do is decide what kind of performer to hire.”

  I knew a performer. A very good professional performer. That was the idea I had wanted to share before.

  I was a little scared to raise my hand. But I had to. I just had to. I could not let the second grade down. I was there to represent them.

  I raised my hand high enough to scratch my chin. I raised my hand a little more and tugged on my red ribbon. Finally I put my hand straight up in the air.

  “Yes, Karen?” said Mr. Berger.

  “Maybe we could get Mr. Wizard. He is a really good magician. He could be our star attraction,” I said.

  “I saw Mr. Wizard’s show. I went on my birthday,” said Peggy, the first-grader. “It was fun.”

  “If the show was fun, then it will be perfect for our Fun Night,” said Mr. Berger. “A show like that is good for all ages.”

  Everyone was excited about my idea. I got excited, too. I was not scared to speak up anymore.

  “It may not be so easy to reach him,” I explained. “I happen to know Mr. Wizard’s sister. She says he is on the road now.”

  “You do not have to worry about that,” said Ms. Williams. “Mr. Berger and I will work on lining up Mr. Wizard for our show.”

  “This was a very good meeting,” said Mr. Berger. “You all did an excellent job.”

  I did it! I did an excellent job. And I had had fun.

  Let’s see. What else could I run for? Maybe I could run for president of the United States. I wonder if that job would be fun, too.

  The Rehearsal

  “Karen, it is time to get up,” said Mommy.

  It was the first Monday in December. Andrew and I were back at the little house with Mommy and Seth.

  The beginning of the month was always kind of confusing. That is because I missed the people I had just left. But I was also happy to be where I was.

  “I will be right down,” I called.

  Knock knock. Andrew poked his head in the door.

  “Is he really coming?” asked Andrew. “Did he really promise?”

  “Yes, he really promised to come,” I replied.

  The teachers had reached Mr. Wizard. He had agreed to perform at Stoneybrook Academy. Andrew was excited. He asked me about it every single day.

  I looked at my calendar. Fun Night was only four days away. The Fun Night Committee had already held auditions. We had picked the best performers from our school. We were having a rehearsal at two o’clock.

  During school that day, I had trouble paying attention. I was waiting for two o’clock. Waiting. Waiting. Finally two o’clock came.

  “Karen, you may be excused for the Fun Night rehearsal,” said Ms. Colman.

  Yippee!

  “Pamela, Jannie, and Leslie, you are also excused,” said Ms. Colman.

  Pamela, Jannie, and Leslie were going to perform in the show. (Pamela and Jannie had made up after the election.) They had a silly act that made everyone laugh.

  I wished the Three Musketeers were going to be in the show together. But I was too busy being second-grade representative. Nancy had been absent the day of the auditions. And Hannie did not want to be in the show without us.

  I walked to the auditorium with Pamela, Jannie, and Leslie. They went backstage to wait for their turn to perform. I sat down to watch the show with the other committee members.

  The first act was a performance by the Double Daredevils. They were two kids from the sixth grade.

  “Please sit back and relax,” said the Daredevils. “We will amaze you with our gymnastics skills.”

  They flipped and tumbled across the stage. They were very, very good.

  Next came a comedian named Hilarious Hilary. She was in the fifth grade. Hilary told lots of funny jokes. She told them in funny voices. Here is my favorite one: What does a bumblebee with hiccups flying backward say? He says, “Zzub-zzub-hic! Zzub-zzub-hic!”

  Then it was time for the Tongue Twister Sisters to perform. Guess who the Tongue Twister Sisters were. They were Pamela, Jannie, and Leslie.

  They recited three tongue twisters together really fast. Then they said, “Whoever knows the next twister, please join in.”

  Here is the twister: How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood? A woodchuck would chuck as much wood as a woodchuck could chuck, if a woodchuck could chuck wood!

  I knew that twister really well. I said it with them. I did not make one mistake.

  Our rehearsal was over. It was great. Fun Night was going to be the best night of the year.

  The Plan

  Hannie invited Nancy and me to her house after school.

  We made raisin toast with cream cheese for our snack. While we were eating, I told Hannie and Nancy one of Hilarious Hilary’s jokes.

  “Where do cows go on vacation?” I asked.

  “I don’t know,” said Hannie. “Where?”
/>   “Moo York,” I replied. I mooed like a cow.

  When we finished eating we did our homework. Then Hannie said, “What should we do now?”

  “Let’s put on a show,” said Nancy.

  “We could put on a magic show,” I said. “I will go to Daddy’s and get Mr. Wizard’s magic set. I am sure Andrew will not mind if we borrow it. I will be right back.”

  When I opened Hannie’s front door, I saw a strange sight. An old green car with yellow fenders was parked in Morbidda Destiny’s driveway. The license plate was 434MAGIC.

  Guess who was walking up Morbidda Destiny’s front steps. Mr. Wizard!

  I thought of running back to tell Hannie and Nancy. But then I thought of something better. I thought of a plan. It was a plan to help Andrew.

  I looked both ways. Then I crossed the street to the witch’s house. Mr. Wizard was just about to ring the bell.

  “Hi,” I said. “My name is Karen Brewer. I live next door. Well, actually I live next door every other month. That is because my parents are divorced. So one month I live with my mother. And one month I live with my father. But that is not what I wanted to say.”

  I was a little bit nervous. That is why I was talking so much.

  “I am pleased to meet you,” said Mr. Wizard. “Is there something special you want to tell me?”

  “As a matter of fact there is,” I said. I told Mr. Wizard that Andrew and I had been at his show.

  “I hope you enjoyed it,” said Mr. Wizard.

  “Oh, yes,” I said. “We enjoyed it very much.”

  Then I told him how worried Andrew was about his penny.

  “I am sorry to hear that,” said Mr. Wizard.

  Finally I told him my plan.

  “Well,” said Mr. Wizard. “I will see what I can do to help.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Wizard,” I said.

  Mr. Wizard shook my hand. Then I waved good-bye and went next door to get the magic set. I hurried back to Hannie’s house with it.

  “What took you so long?” asked Nancy.

  “Oh, nothing,” I replied. I opened the box. “Who wants to wear the magician’s hat?” I asked, waving it in the air.