American Triumph: 1939-1945: 4 STORIES IN 1

by Susan Martins Miller, Norma Jean Lutz, Bonnie Hinman

  CHAPTER 10

  Quiz Contest

  Mandy was right. Saying good-bye to Mark a second time was devastating for Lora. She didn’t talk as much as she used to. She didn’t smile as much, either. Mandy thought her oldest sister shouldn’t be sitting around listening to “I’ll Never Smile Again” on the phonograph over and over again. But no one was asking Mandy’s opinion.

  After a couple weeks, Lora volunteered for the “Bundles for Britain” relief work, which kept her away from home more than ever. That meant she wasn’t there to help with the bushel baskets of ironing anymore. Lora said it was important that she be involved in humanitarian work since she was engaged to a sailor on a warship.

  Caroline said that ironing for the family was humanitarian, but Mama told her to hush. Mandy tended to agree with Caroline on that point. It seemed to Mandy that Lora should do her fair share whether she was helping send supplies to Britain or not.

  One Saturday afternoon when much of the housework was finished, Mandy was headed to her room to finish a library book. As she passed the bedroom of her older sisters, Caroline called out, “Hey, Mandy. Come here a minute.”

  Mandy stopped in her tracks. “Are you talking to me?”

  Caroline laughed. “Know any other Mandys that might happen to be in our upstairs today?”

  Mandy laughed, too. “I guess not.” She stepped inside. The older girls’ room always smelled nice, like Evening in Paris and To a Wild Rose body powder. The phonograph was vibrating with a swing number played by Tommy Dorsey’s orchestra. Both Lora and Caroline liked the sound of the swing bands. Mandy wondered if Caroline had permission to use it while Lora wasn’t there.

  Caroline was sitting at the dressing table brushing her hair in an upward sweep. “What do you think?” She turned around while holding the hair up off her neck. “Do I look older?”

  “A little bit.” Mandy sat down on the bed. Actually she didn’t think the hairdo made her sister look any different at all.

  “Mandy, do you think Mama would ever let me go on a date?”

  Mandy was shocked. “A date?”

  “Oh, not a real date like in a car. But maybe go with a boy to the drugstore after school for a malt?”

  Mandy hadn’t the slightest idea what Mama might say. Nor did she have the slightest idea why Caroline would be asking her, of all people. “I guess all you can do is ask,” she offered lamely.

  Caroline turned around to face the mirror. “You’re probably right.” She let the handful of hair drop and began brushing it again. “I know I’m not as pretty as some of the girls in school, but there’s this boy. Randall is his name. Well, he started talking to me. Our lockers are next to each other.” Caroline smiled as though they were sharing a good secret. “It’s a swell way to get to know each other.”

  Mandy wasn’t sure how to answer, but she tried to think of something so Caroline wouldn’t stop talking to her. “That is a great way. We don’t have lockers in grammar school.”

  “Well, you will in junior high. Sometimes having a locker is a pain in the neck. But when a nice boy has the one next to you, it can be a good thing.”

  Mandy was thinking that, with her luck, she’d have a locker next to Elizabeth Barrington.

  “Anyway,” Caroline went on, “he’s asked me if I’d share a malt with him after school someday.”

  “Did he say which day?”

  Caroline shook her head. “Just someday.” She got up from the dressing table and did a few dance steps as she came across the room. “I’m learning to dance. One of the girls at school knows how to do the boomps-a-daisy. She’s teaching me.”

  Mandy nodded, trying to look as though she were old enough to truly be sharing this conversation when she really wasn’t. She’d never heard of such a thing as boomps-a-daisy.

  Caroline sat down beside her on the bed and reached out to touch Mandy’s shoulder-length hair. It was as though Caroline were looking at her, truly looking at her, for the very first time. “Are you going to wear your hair straight like this forever?”

  Mandy shrugged. “I’m not as good as you are with hairdo ideas.”

  “Have you thought about cutting it? Then you can pin it up in pin curls, and it would be fluffed around your face.”

  Mandy gave a little shiver. It sounded wonderful. “I don’t even know how to make pin curls.”

  “Nothing to it.” Caroline gave a wave of her hand. “You just take a strand like this.” She lifted a strand of her own hair. “Then you wrap it around your first finger like this.” She chuckled. “It’s a little easier when it’s wet and has some Dep on it. When it’s all wound, you pull your finger out, hold the curl in place, and put in the bobby pins.”

  She demonstrated by opening a bobby pin with her teeth, then slipping it over the pin curl. Another bobby pin was put in to form an X on the curl and she was finished. “It’s that simple.”

  Mandy had seen both Lora and Caroline with their hair up in pin curls, but neither of them had ever taken the time to show her how to do it.

  “Do you think Mama would let me get my hair cut?”

  Caroline jumped off the bed. “As you just told me, all you can do is ask.”

  Mama said yes to both girls. Caroline was allowed to stop at the drugstore with Randall, but only once a week and only for forty-five minutes. Caroline was delighted. And Mandy was delighted that she was going to get her long hair cut off. Now Mama couldn’t look at her and say, “Mandy, why don’t you go braid your hair?”

  With her hair shorter and curlier, Mandy felt different somehow. She knew the girls at school wouldn’t treat her any differently, but that didn’t really matter. When she looked in the mirror, she liked what she saw. Even Peter complimented her on how it looked.

  Her arms got tired sometimes when she was putting up her pin curls each night. Especially the ones in the back. But she wouldn’t complain. She figured it was part of growing older. Lucky Susan. Her hair was so curly she’d never need pin curls.

  On a morning in mid-March, Mandy entered the front hall of the school and saw an entire set of encyclopedias sitting on a long table. Above the set of books hung a big sign that read, “WIN A SET OF ENCYCLOPEDIAS. QUIZ CONTEST, APRIL 19.”

  Mandy had no idea what a quiz contest was, but she soon found out. Mrs. Crowley handed out forms that explained the details. The contest was for fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-graders. Those entering the contest were to answer questions ranging from geography and history to grammar and arithmetic. The contest, it said, was to be held in the school auditorium. And the grand prize was the set of encyclopedias.

  For a brief moment, Mandy considered filling out the form and entering the contest. How she would love to have that set of books on the shelves of the McMichael living room. But remembering the last attack from Elizabeth and her little group, she felt it wasn’t really worth it. Who needed any more grief? She folded up the paper, stuffed it into her desk, and put it out of her mind.

  Her birthday was right around the corner, and she was excited about finally turning ten. That was a much more pleasant thought than any old quiz contest.

  A few days before the big day, Mama and Caroline asked her if she wanted to invite any of her friends over for a little party.

  Mandy hesitated. She wasn’t sure what to say. Mama and Caroline glanced at one another. How could she tell them she didn’t have even one friend at Queen Anne School? Mama had always preached to them that to have a friend you must be one. She sure didn’t want to be accused of not being a good friend.

  And Caroline was always telling her that she hid behind her books. “You need to stop reading so much and have a little fun,” she’d say.

  So when they asked about inviting friends, she shook her head. “Thanks for the offer, but I’d rather be with family.”

  “All right,” Mama said. “It’s your birthday.”

  Mama outdid herself by baking a high, light angel food cake with pink seven-minute frosting fluffed all over it. She top
ped it off with ten pink candles.

  Several brightly wrapped gifts were on the sideboard in the dining room. Mandy could hardly wait for dinner to be over so she could open them. But first they had to light candles, and then everyone sang “Happy Birthday” to her.

  “Should we wait until your father gets home before opening gifts?” Mama asked with a twinkle in her eye.

  “No, no,” the twins called out in unison as though the gifts were theirs. “We’ll be asleep before Daddy gets home.”

  But Mandy knew Mama was teasing, and soon the twins knew it as well. The little ones were in charge of bringing the gifts to her. The first gift was a pair of brand-new roller skates. She’d been using old ones that had belonged to Lora and Caroline. Now she had a pair all her own.

  The next gift was shaped like a shoebox. Sure enough, inside the wrapped box was a pair of black-and-white saddle oxfords.

  Caroline smiled. “I told Mama to get them for you,” she said. “Everyone’s wearing them this year.”

  As if Mandy didn’t know. She lifted them up and inhaled the good smell of new shoe leather.

  The last package, which was signed from all her brothers and sisters, was the best of all. Two pairs of dungarees. Blue denim dungarees just like the girls in the Golden Ring wore every Friday—with their pant legs rolled up just above the top of their socks. Mandy hugged the dungarees to herself and laughed right out loud. What a wonderful gift.

  “Thank you, everybody. Thanks so much.” And she went around hugging everyone. Even John, who said he was ready for a second piece of cake!

  Mandy felt great wearing her dungarees and new saddle oxfords to school on Friday. And of course, Friday was library day, so it was a double-good day. When Miss LaFayette saw her, she raised her eyebrows and grinned. “You look great,” Miss LaFayette said softly so no one else could hear.

  Mandy thanked her as though she were used to receiving such a compliment. Inside, she was turning cartwheels. As usual, she grabbed a couple books, headed to the reading area, and sat down at one of the tables where she could be alone. Later, she sensed that someone was nearby browsing the magazine racks where the Jack & Jill and Wee Wisdom magazines were kept.

  Then she heard a voice say, “Mandy McMichael, for being an Einstein, you sure are dumb.”

  Mandy turned around and looked straight at Helga Gottman.

  CHAPTER 11

  Take Me Out to the Ball Game

  Mandy was shocked. Helga hardly ever talked to her. And now that she had, she’d called her dumb. What was going on? Mandy turned back to her book and ignored the remark.

  Once again came Helga’s grating whisper. “You are so dumb.” Mandy glanced up at the girl again. She was flipping through an old issue of Jack & Jill, acting as though nothing had happened. Mandy went back to her book.

  “You’re dumb to let all those snobs tell you how to act. I don’t let them tell me how to act, and you’re smarter than I am by a long shot.” Mandy heard the magazine hit the shelf as Helga put it back. “You’re so dumb to let those silly girls cheat you out of a set of encyclopedias.” She stepped closer to where Mandy was sitting, the shuffle of her built-up shoe sounding on the wooden floor. “You’re the only one in fourth grade who could really show ‘em up,” she said as she walked by. “Why don’t you do it?”

  Over the weekend, Mandy had a lot of time to ponder Helga’s remark. It was true. She lay awake thinking about it. Why had she allowed those girls to force her into missing spelling words? And letting her schoolwork slide? And getting bad grades—all on purpose?

  Just so they wouldn’t make fun of her? They made fun of her anyway. No matter what she did. For the first time, Mandy saw this was a losing battle. So why continue to battle? Helga never changed being who she was just to please the Golden Ring.

  During her next worktime in the library, Mandy asked Miss LaFayette, “What would a person have to study to be able to compete well in the quiz contest?”

  Miss LaFayette’s eyes lit up. “Have you entered?”

  “Not yet. I’m just thinking about it.”

  “I was hoping you would. It’d be a good experience for you. A student who reads as much as you do already has a broad knowledge in a number of areas.” Miss LaFayette pulled out a pencil and said, “Tell you what. While you do the filing, I’ll make a list of a few books that might help.” Then she asked, “Do you have someone at home who would ask you questions?”

  Mandy smiled. “I have a whole houseful.”

  “Oh, one more thing.” Miss LaFayette reached over to the corner of her desk and handed her a form. “Be sure and enter!”

  Every week, Mrs. Crowley gave a practice spelling test on Wednesday and the graded test on Friday morning. Anyone who made a perfect score on Wednesday didn’t have to take the Friday test. Mandy made up her mind that from now until school was out, she was going to try to make a perfect score on every practice test. Just like that, she decided to stop failing on purpose. And it felt so good! Wait until Mama and Dad saw her next report card.

  When she made a perfect score on the Wednesday test, the whispers started fast and furious. But this time it didn’t really matter. Like Helga said, why should she let those girls tell her how to act? God gave her a brain, and she was going to use it.

  At home, Mandy began to study like crazy, using the books that Miss LaFayette suggested. Mandy pestered Mama, John, and Caroline to ask her questions. When one got tired, she turned to the next. Mama seemed pretty happy that her daughter was serious about her studies again.

  “I really want to win that set of encyclopedias,” she told Caroline one evening. They were sitting on Caroline’s bed, and Caroline was asking her questions out of a history book. Ever since their talk when Caroline had told her about Randall, Caroline had started talking to her more. She even told her details of what Randall was like and how much fun they had at the drugstore.

  Caroline might have been lonely because Lora was gone so much. Mandy didn’t care what the reason was; she was just glad Caroline was no longer treating her like a baby.

  “You’re going to be competing with kids two years older than you are,” Caroline reminded her as she scanned the questions.

  “I know,” Mandy said. “I haven’t forgotten. But I still want to win the encyclopedias.”

  Caroline laughed. “I guess it’s good to have a goal.”

  Mandy had barely a month to prepare, and she was determined to make the most of every second.

  With the arrival of spring came more bad news from Europe. Hitler had overrun Denmark and taken over Norway, and the German army did it with such speed and surprise that neither country could mount a defense.

  Mandy watched her father’s face grow serious as he listened to the radio news and discussed the war with Mama. He would shake his head in bewilderment and say, “I don’t see how we can stay out of it much longer.”

  Dad was pleased when Neville Chamberlain was no longer prime minister of Britain. When Winston Churchill took his place, Dad said, “Now things will change for the better.” Mandy sure hoped that was so.

  Spring also brought with it complications in John’s breathing problems. Sometimes Mandy could hear him coughing in the night. Hard, deep coughing. She wished she could do something to help. It must be awful to have such trouble breathing.

  Mama was always telling him to be careful. Not to over-exert. Not to get overtired. And on and on. But he never listened. Mandy watched him at recess, and he played just as hard as all the other boys. But she’d never tell Mama.

  Peter was also getting baseball fever. He kept saying he was going to get tickets to one of the Rainiers’ home games. Mandy never dreamed that might include her, but one night at supper he said to her, “Hey, little sister, do you think you could take one Saturday afternoon off from your new study binge?”

  “I don’t know,” she answered. “Why?”

  Peter gave her a grin and winked. “I finally have tickets to the Rainiers’ game.”
<
br />   “Hey,” John spoke up. “You were gonna take me to that game, not her.”

  “Well actually, John, I’m taking both of you.”

  Mandy thought surely she must be dreaming. She’d wake up in a minute, and her brother would say he was only teasing. Could it be that Peter was actually taking her to a ball game?

  “And that’s not all,” Peter added. “We’re taking Baiko and Dayu as well.”

  John cheered. “Peter, you’re the best brother ever in the whole world.”

  But just like a boy, instead of John giving Peter a hug, the two of them started wrestling right in the middle of the kitchen. Mama made them stop. “Before you break something,” she said. But she was smiling when she said it.

  To keep peace in the family, Mama planned to take the twins to the zoo at Woodland Park the same afternoon as the ball game. Caroline, it turned out, had a day-long babysitting job for a family up the street.

  It rained all week, and Mandy began to wonder if the game would be rained out. As Saturday grew nearer, she found herself praying for good weather. Sure enough, when she opened her eyes on Saturday morning, welcome sunshine was pouring in their bedroom windows.

  “I’m gonna see bears today,” Susan said as soon as she woke up. Mandy was glad her little sister was happy about going to the zoo. Mama said the twins would never be able to sit still through a whole ball game.

  “You’re not leaving to go to the zoo until after lunch,” Mandy informed her as she crawled out of bed. “We all have to pitch in and help clean house this morning.”

  Susan stopped and thought about that a minute. “It’s a long time until lunch.” She sounded a little disappointed.

  For once Mandy agreed with Susan—it did seem like a long time. And she didn’t like having to clean house when Lora and Caroline were both gone.

  By the time Peter came home from the station at lunchtime, though, John and Mandy were all ready to go. The three of them headed for the bus stop a few blocks from their house. As they waited, John and Peter started singing “Take Me Out to the Ball Game.” Mandy looked around to see if anyone was within hearing distance.