The Pumpkin-Eater
The school
day
seemed to be dragging on and on for me. All I could think about
was the courtroom dream I had last night! For the first time in my
life, I was excited for bedtime! The storybooks my mom read before were
okay, but I saw something special in this one!
After I
walked home from school, I did a little homework, ate dinner, and
watched
the television for a while. Before I knew it, I heard the clock
downstairs sound to inform everyone in the house it was eight o'clock!
"Yay!!!!" I
yelled for everyone in the house to hear. I jumped to my feet to change
into my pajamas and brush my teeth. No one in the family had ever seen
me move that fast for bedtime! In less than five minutes I had already
jumped into bed.
"MOOOOOOOMMMM!!!
It is time for bed! I need you to come read my Mother Goose story," I
called from my bed.
"Okay! What
story looks good tonight, Miss Julie?" said my mom as she walked into
the bedroom.
"Hummmmmm...."
I said as I began to flip through the colorful pages again.
"Oh, how
about this one," my mom said as she pointed to a picture with a woman
in a huge pumpkin.
My mother
began to read the story as I wondered about the strange woman in the
large
pumpkin.
"Peter,
Peter, pumpkin-eater,
Had a wife and couldn't keep her;
He put her in a pumpkin shell,
And there he kept her very well."
"Why could
he not keep her?" I asked. "And who would want to be in that smelly old
pumpkin?"
"Well... I do not know," my mom replied. "I am sure that your busy little mind will come up with something."
Julie's mind began to wander, and
before she knew it she had fallen asleep. Let's check in on her dream
again.
"Let's
welcome to our show... Mr. and Mrs. Peter Pumpkin." I heard an
announcer
say overhead.
As the crowd
began to clap, I started to look around the strange setting. This time
I saw several cameras and sound microphones surrounding a yellow couch
that was empty at the moment, right next to a black lady getting out of
a yellow chair. I was in the audience of an Oprah Winfrey Show! I am so
glad my mom watches that show every day, or I would have no idea where
I was at!
As I
continued watching, a young man walked out pulling a cart with a large
pumpkin on it. I looked at the pumpkin very carefully, and as I did I
saw a woman inside! This had to be Peter and his pumpkin shell wife.
"Thank you
for joining us on the show today!" I heard Oprah say to the couple.
"Please tell us a little more about your unique situation."
"Well,"
Peter began, "a couple of years ago, Paula started to sleepwalk. I had
a lot of trouble keeping her in the house."
"We also
grow award-winning pumpkins at our farm!" Paula stated. "People come
from all over the country to see these gigantic pumpkins!"
"So the
pumpkin you are sitting in is homegrown?" asked Oprah.
"Yes, it
is!" Paula replied with a smile on her face.
"I got the
idea one night when I was sitting outside eating a pumpkin pie my wife
had made while I waited for her to walk out the front door during her
sleep," Peter said.
"What an
interesting idea! Do you stay in the pumpkin all of the time?" Oprah
said.
"Well not
all of the time, but it is so comfortable that I do spend the majority
of the day and night in here! I get so scared about the sleepwalking
these days. It is just safer in here. I do not ever crawl out when I
begin to sleepwalk, but if I did
Peter is always nearby," Paula said.
"Well,
ladies and gentlemen, there you have it! The unusual story all of us
have heard about over the past few weeks is final completely revealed.
No drama or abuse, just a worried husband with a strange idea to help
out his sleepwalking wife!" Oprah began. "We'll hear from actress
Jennifer Aniston after this commercial break when we return..."
Oprah's
voice started to fade as I woke up from my dream. What a great ending,
I thought to myself. I knew Peter was doing something great for his
wife!
Return to my Coverpage
Go back to the Introduction
Go back to Lucy
Locket
Continue to Tommy Tittlemouse
Skip to A Strange Old Woman
