On the Road with Mallory

by Laurie Friedman

  My third wish did NOT come true. In fact, the opposite of it came true.

  When we left Albuquerque, we had van troubles (and I’m not talking about the kind of troubles that have to do with the engine or the brakes).

  I’m talking about the kind of troubles that happen when one person does something that annoys the other people they are with.

  The problems started when we stopped at Arizona’s Petrified Forest National Park. It’s part of an area called the Painted Desert because the trees in the forest had literally turned to colored stone.

  But when we got there and started walking around and looking at all of the colorful rock formations, Kate got out her tablet and started reading.

  She read about the history of the Painted Desert and how it started to form over 200 million years ago.

  She read about the logs that fell into the mineral-rich swamp and became embedded with mineral crystals and didn’t rot. Instead they literally petrified—turned to stone.

  “Can you please put that away?” asked Max.

  Max can be rude when he says things like that. (I should know, he’s said plenty of things like it to me.) But when he said that to Kate, I don’t think he meant it in a rude way. Plus, I thought it was annoying that she was reading while we were all trying to look at things.

  “Thank you, Kate,” Dad said when she paused to take a breath. “That’s very interesting. How about you put your tablet away for a while?”

  “It’s pretty cool here,” I added. “Maybe you can actually look at things instead of just reading about them.”

  But Kate ignored all of us and kept reading.

  She read about the size of the Painted Desert (which is 346 square miles).

  She read about the dinosaurs that once roamed the Painted Desert.

  Then she read about the erosion of the desert and how wind and water and soil changes continue to change the landscape of the desert.

  Max and I rolled our eyes at each other like this was crazy. Even though Mom and Dad didn’t do that, I could tell they were thinking the same thing.

  Mom went over to Kate. “Why don’t you finish up?” She even said she could hold Kate’s tablet for her.

  “OK,” said Kate like she was almost done and would give Mom her tablet as soon as she was. But then she started reading about the plant life of the Painted Desert, and she didn’t show any signs of finishing, so Max said something (which I think everyone else was thinking but wouldn’t have said).

  When Max said that, ten things happened that led us to where we are now, which is back in the car, driving to the Grand Canyon, and NO ONE is speaking to each other.

  THE 10 THINGS THAT LED US TO WHERE WE ARE NOW (WHICH IS IN A SILENT CAR!)

  Thing #1: Kate started crying and said she was mad at Max.

  Thing #2: Mom and Dad made Max apologize to Kate for telling her to shut up (which he’s not allowed to say, but I don’t blame him for saying).

  Thing #3: I said, “Maybe Kate should apologize too, since she wouldn’t listen when we asked her nicely to stop reading,” which made Kate cry even harder.

  Thing #4: Mom and Dad made me apologize to Kate for hurting her feelings.

  Thing #5: Kate refused to accept Max’s apology or mine.

  Thing #6: Mom tried to explain to Kate why it is good to give people a little bit of information but not too much.

  Thing #7: Kate said Mom was taking Max’s and my side and that no one on this trip appreciated her or all the information she’s tried to share and that no one wants her on this trip and that she wants to go home. NOW!

  Thing #8: Mom said that was NOT true, that we were all glad she’d come on the trip. Then she looked at all of us like we should prove to Kate that what she said was true. So I nodded like it was, and so did Dad. Max nodded too, but I guess it wasn’t very convincing because Kate started crying HARDER.

  Thing #9: Dad said he’d had enough and made us all get back in the van (even though the Painted Desert is 346 square miles and we’d barely seen any of it).

  Thing #10: We got back in the van, and no one has said a word since Dad drove off. (Except for Mom who said we are all acting like children, and I think by that, she meant very little ones.)

  Grand Canyon, here we come.

  Mallory

  The Grand Canyon

  ON OUR WAY

  Dear Trip Journal,

  We’re on our way to the Grand Canyon, but no one is talking. We drove all this way and why? What good is a vacation if the people on it aren’t even speaking to each other?

  Technically, Mom and Dad are talking. But Max, Kate, and I aren’t saying a word (at least not to each other).

  Mom and Dad tried to get us to talk. As we drove away from the Painted Desert, Dad said, “Kate, I know it hurt your feelings when Max told you to shut up. That wasn’t nice, but he apologized and so did Mallory. I think it would be nice if you accepted their apology.”

  But that’s not what Kate did. She reached into her backpack, got out a tissue, and blew her nose. Then she dabbed at her eyes and made a bunch of sniffle noises like she was still upset and couldn’t possibly accept an apology.

  Honestly, it was a little too dramatic, and I wasn’t the only one who thought so.

  Dad made a tssk sound which I know was his way of saying he was just going to wait for things to work themselves out.

  Mom put her head back on the seat and closed her eyes.

  Max made an I-give-up grunt. Then he got out his phone and started texting.

  I didn’t know what to do, so I got out my journal and started writing about what was happening, which is what I’m doing now.

  For the record, I, Mallory McDonald, am sitting in the backseat on my way to the Grand Canyon, writing in my journal about a backseat full of people who aren’t speaking to each other, unless you count the comment Kate just made (and she made it under her breath like she didn’t necessarily want it counted) about Max: “I wonder if he’s texting Winnie or Sam.”

  Even though I’m mad at Kate, I’d be lying if I said I’m not kind of wondering the same thing.

  Mallory

  HERE AT LAST!

  Dear Trip Journal,

  We just got to the Grand Canyon and even though this last part of the drive wasn’t the most fun part of the trip, I’m super excited to be here.

  But it might be a while before we actually see the Grand Canyon. We just got into a very long line of cars that are also going into the park to do what we’re doing.

  Right when we got into the line, Mom said, “We’re here!” Then she actually started singing it.

  Song: We’re here, because we’re here, because we’re here, because we’re here …

  When she finished singing, Dad said, “Who is ready to have some fun?” Then he talked about all the things we’re going to do here like riding mules into the Grand Canyon and going white-water rafting

  I could tell both my parents were trying hard to change the mood in the car.

  “I’m excited!” I said.

  Max, who never says he’s excited about family activities, said he was excited too.

  Then, everyone looked at Kate. It was her turn to say she was excited, but she didn’t.

  “Kate, you love riding horse, so the mule ride should be really fun for you,” said Mom. She turned around when she said it and looked at Kate like she expected her to say something positive about how this would be fun for her since she does like riding horses.

  “I guess,” Kate mumbled. “But mules and horses aren’t the same things.”

  Dad took a deep breath. “Kate, why don’t you tell us some facts about the Grand Canyon. Now that we’re here, it would be nice to know a little bit about what we’re going to see.”

  “I don’t think anyone thinks my facts are fun,” said Kate like her feelings were still hurt from the last time she’d tried to give us some facts and was not about to give us any more.

  Mom and Dad looked at each other and shook their head
s like they’d tried and they didn’t know what else to do.

  Plus, they got busy doing other things. We just pulled into the hotel parking lot, and Dad is trying to find a parking space while Mom is looking for the folder with our reservation information in it.

  “Our hotel looks cool!” I said as I looked out the window at a wooden building that was surrounded by trees.

  I turned around to see if Max and Kate were looking too. Max was staring out the window like he was taking everything in. But Kate was just sitting, looking down at her hands, like she didn’t really care that we’d just arrived at a super cool place. She actually looked sad, and I felt bad for her.

  “Everybody is going to have a great time here!” I said like it was a fact.

  I hoped my cousin was thinking that “everybody” meant her too, but I couldn’t tell what Kate was thinking. Even though not all of my wishes have come true on this trip, as Dad pulled into the parking space, I made another one.

  I wish this will be a great vacation.

  For everybody.

  Mallory

  A Family Feud

  DISASTER STRIKES!

  Dear Trip Journal,

  I can’t believe what just happened!!! I expected a lot of things when we got to the Grand Canyon, but I never expected a family feud! Actually, what just happened was a whole lot bigger than a feud. It was a fight: Kate vs. Mallory vs. Max.

  Here’s what happened.

  When we checked into the hotel, it was almost time for sunset. The lady at the front desk told us that sunset over the Canyon is beautiful, so Mom and Dad suggested we go.

  “Awesome!” said Max.

  But Kate said she didn’t feel well and didn’t want to go.

  I wasn’t sure what to do. I could tell Mom, Dad, and Max really wanted to go. But I also knew we couldn’t leave Kate alone at the hotel.

  Even though Kate has been kind of annoying on this trip, I couldn’t help feeling a little bit sorry for her. If I was on a trip with her family and I thought no one wanted me to be there, I’d be upset too.

  “I could stay at the hotel with Kate,” I said.

  Kate looked at me like she was surprised I had offered to do that. I did a no-big-deal shrug. “We can go to the gift shop and look at souvenirs,” I said.

  At first, Mom and Dad didn’t think it was a good idea to leave us behind. But we promised to be careful, and Mom gave me her phone in case anything went wrong. Honestly, I think my parents thought a little separation would be good for everyone.

  So Mom, Dad, and Max left to go see the sunset and Kate and I went to the gift shop.

  Kate seemed happy. I wasn’t sure if it was because I had offered to stay at the hotel with her or because the gift shop had lots of cool stuff, but her mood had definitely improved.

  Kate and I looked around for a long time, then I bought postcards for Mary Ann, Joey, and Chloe Jennifer. Kate bought one too and said she was going to send it to her parents.

  When we left the gift shop, Kate and I sat down at a table in the lobby to write our postcards. “I have to go to the bathroom,” I said when I finished writing.

  Kate said, “Go ahead. I’ll take the post cards to the front desk and mail them.”

  I gave Kate the postcards I’d written to Mary Ann, Joey, and Chloe Jennifer, and then I went to the bathroom.

  “All set!” said Kate when I came out.

  So we went to the room. When Max got back to the room, it seemed like his mood had improved too. He’d taken lots of sunset pictures and was showing them to us.

  “What did you guys do?” he asked.

  I had a feeling Mom and Dad must have talked to him while they were out because I could tell he was trying to be nice. Which is why what happened next really surprised me, and NOT in a good way.

  ME: Kate and I bought postcards. I sent mine to my friends and she sent hers to her parents.

  KATE: (Looking like what she was about to say was no big deal, even though it turned out to be a HUGE deal) I didn’t actually send the postcard to my parents.

  ME: (Confused.) If you didn’t send it to your parents, who did you send it to?

  KATE: Winnie.

  MAX: (Looking even more confused than I was.) You mean my girlfriend?

  KATE: (Nodding) Yes.

  MAX: I don’t believe you. How would you even know her address?

  KATE: Mallory gave it to me.

  ME: (Not saying anything, but giving her a what-are-you-talking-about look.)

  MAX: (Almost shouting.) Why would you give her Winnie’s address?

  ME: I didn’t!

  KATE: Yes you did. You gave me her address when you asked me to mail your postcards to Mary Ann and Joey. You said Winnie is Mary Ann’s stepsister and Joey’s sister. And you told me that they all moved at the beginning of the summer, so I figured they must all have the same address (looking proud of herself for figuring that out, even though it didn’t seem like something to be proud of).

  MAX: (Looking at me, but pointing to Kate.) I can’t believe you gave her the address!

  ME: (Looking at Max.) I didn’t give it to her. She took it! (Turning to Kate.) You said you would mail the postcards while I went to the bathroom. You didn’t say anything about using the address!

  KATE: I only took what was given to me! (Crossing her arms like she didn’t think she should have to defend herself.)

  MAX: But why would you send a postcard to Winnie?

  KATE: (Not answering Max’s question.) Why would you tell a girl who’s not your girlfriend that you think her freckles are cute?

  ME: (Not saying anything, but wondering the same thing.)

  MAX: (Definitely shouting.) That’s not any of your business!

  KATE: Don’t you think Winnie should know if you said that to another girl?

  MAX: (Shouting even louder!) Is that what you said in the postcard?

  KATE: Maybe it is!

  When Kate said that, I thought Max was going to shout even more at her, but the person he started shouting at was me. He said it was my fault for giving Winnie’s address to Kate.

  That made me yell at Max that he shouldn’t be getting mad at me. I reminded him that I was the one who defended him when Kate got mad at him for telling her to shut up.

  Max yelled at me that that had nothing to do with anything.

  I thought it did. I thought it had to do with me being a good sister and taking up for my brother. But he wasn’t doing the same thing for me. “None of this would be happening if you hadn’t been sending flirty texts to a girl who is NOT your girlfriend!” I said to Max.

  “See,” said Kate. “Even Mallory agrees with me.”

  But that wasn’t completely true. Maybe I agreed with Kate about the texting thing, but she had said and done a lot of things that I didn’t agree with, like taking the Winston’s address without my permission. So I yelled at her that she shouldn’t have done that.

  Kate started yelling back (I think she was yelling at both Max and me) that this is the WORST trip she’s ever been on.

  Then everyone was yelling at the same time. I couldn’t even keep track of what we were yelling.

  Finally I stood up on a chair and said, “If you don’t stop yelling, I’m going to get Mom and Dad!”

  When I said that, Max and Kate both got quiet.

  Max plopped down on this bed said, “I’ve had it!” Then he put on his headphones and hasn’t said a word to anyone since.

  Kate plopped down on her bed (which is also my bed) and got out her tablet (and her headphones) and put them on too.

  I wish I could say that I got out my headphones, but since I don’t have headphones, I couldn’t do that. I also couldn’t plop down on my bed because somebody was already on it.

  All I could do is sit at the desk in our room and write in my journal, which is what I’ve been doing.

  No one in this room has said anything for a very long time. It’s so quiet in here you could hear a pin drop.

  Even if you d
ropped it into the Grand Canyon.

  Mallory

  Mule Madness

  IN A BARN IN THE BATHROOM NOT COMING OUT

  Dear Trip Journal,

  After the fight Max, Kate, and I had last night, I didn’t think this trip could get worse. But it did. It just got much worse!

  When I got up this morning, I put on my hiking boots and packed my backpack with the stuff I needed for the mule ride into the Grand Canyon.

  We all ate breakfast at the hotel. It was a quiet breakfast. It’s not like Max, Kate, and I aren’t talking to each other. We are. But mostly to say things that have to be said like, “Pass the syrup.”

  But a quiet breakfast was not my problem! When we finished breakfast, we went to the barn.

  First, we met our guide, Bob. He explained how we are going to ride the mules down to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, then spend the night at a lodge at the bottom, and ride back up tomorrow.

  Then we met our mules, and that’s when my problem started.

  I could tell right away that my mule, Chowder, did NOT like me. He didn’t look very friendly (not that any of the other mules did, but he looked even less friendly).

  And when I was trying to put my things in the packs on Chowder’s backs (the way Bob showed us how to do it), he kept pulling away like he didn’t want my things on his back.

  It didn’t seem like Chowder wanted to take me into the Canyon. So I raised my hand and told Bob that maybe Chowder needed a day off and I needed another mule. But Bob said Chowder was fine.

  When I got on Chowder, my problems got bigger.

  He scooted back and forth so much that I thought I was going to be mule sick (the same thing as seasick, except it happens when you’re on a mule, and not a boat).

  I got off Chowder and told Bob I had to go to the bathroom, which is where I am now and where I’d like to stay.