Miss Bottomly tapped her cup with a spoon, and the tinkle got everyone’s attention. “Thank you, girls,” she said when all eyes were on her. “I’d like to tell you our plans for this afternoon. Girls from cabins one and two, you’ll be having canoe lessons. Cabins three and four, you’re scheduled for swimming lessons. And cabin five, you’re on KP.”
The girls from cabin five groaned.
“Some people think KP stands for kitchen patrol, but it really means kitchen privileges,” Miss Bottomly continued. “I’m sure cabin five will do an excellent job. Mrs. Carson will enjoy their help, and it’s a chance for them to earn extra points for their cabin. So girls from cabins one, two, three, and four, meet at the flagpole in forty minutes, at two o’clock, with your towels and your swimming gear. As I said, girls from cabins one and two will have canoe lessons, while cabins three and four will have swimming lessons. At three o’clock we’ll switch. Girls from cabins three and four will have their canoe lesson, and cabins one and two will have swimming. Cabin five will join the swimming group when they’ve finished their KP.”
Sophie saw Ginette scowling, but at the mention of canoe lessons for cabins three and four, her face brightened a little. She glanced around at the other girls at the table, then quickly snatched the last few cookies from the tray and shoved them up her sleeve, as well.
Strange, Sophie thought. For such a skinny little kid she sure has an enormous appetite.
“You may go back to your cabins now,” Miss Bottomly said.
Sophie decided this was a good chance to find her Star Girl ball. She had forty minutes to get back to the dock and make a thorough search. Sophie put her hand in her shorts pocket. It was empty. More than empty. Her pocket was like a deep hole into which all her courage had drained.
As the cabin four girls trooped out of the mess hall behind Miss Rosy, Sophie turned, determined to go down to the dock.
“Come on, girls,” Miss Rosy said, looking directly at Sophie. “We’ll have plenty of time to go down to the dock later. Right now you should get all your stuff organized, maybe even decorate the cabin a little. Then you have to get your swimming gear ready for your lessons. Oh, and there’s something special I want to tell you about.”
Sophie couldn’t believe it. At this rate her ball would be lost forever. Reluctantly she followed the rest of her cabin mates back to cabin four.
As the girls clattered to get in through the door, Ginette tripped over the ledge and sprawled onto the floor on her hands and knees.
“Ginette!” Miss Rosy cried, rushing to help her. “Are you all right?”
Ginette nodded, blushing. She got to her feet and quickly brushed off her knees.
Margaret and Elizabeth arched their eyebrows at each other as if to say, “What a clumsy dolt!”
Sophie’s cheeks burned with embarrassment. She felt a surge of pity.
Thankfully one of the other girls—Sophie thought her name was Betty—changed the subject. “What was the special thing you want to tell us, Miss Rosy?”
“Oh, yes,” Miss Rosy said, lowering her voice as if she were telling them a secret.
Sophie leaned forward with the other girls to hear.
“I just found out that there’s going to be a contest tonight for the best cabin call, so I thought we could get a head start,” Miss Rosy said, her eyes big. “Anybody got any ideas?”
“What’s a cabin call?” Elizabeth asked.
“You know, something like, ’Oh, we’re all in cabin eight and we’re so great!’”
“How about, ’We’re in cabin four and we fall on the floor’?” Elizabeth’s buddy, Margaret, snickered.
The other girls stared at Ginette and laughed, too. Ginette’s cheeks blazed, and she pulled her camp hat lower over her face.
Sophie jumped in front of her buddy and yelled in her loudest voice, “Oh, we’re cabin four and our heads are so sore, ’cause we slammed our green door!” Then she couldn’t think of anything else to rhyme.
A girl named Peggy called out, “And we’re rotten to the core!”
“I love it!” Miss Rosy said. “You guys are so creative. Let’s try it all together. From the top now, everyone.”
FOUR
Sophie sprinted toward the dock. If she was really quick, she could hunt for her Star Girl ball before their swimming lessons started. Now that the tide was out the sea was low, which made the ramp leading to the dock so steep that she had to hang on to the sides to keep her balance.
“I want everyone in cabins three and four down here at the beach,” Miss Bonny said. “Come on, all of you.” She gestured toward Sophie.
Grudgingly Sophie left the ramp and trudged behind the rest of the girls down the path to the beach. All the girls were wearing bathing suits and sandals and had towels draped over their shoulders. Everyone except Ginette. She hadn’t changed into her bathing suit. She was still wearing the same old brown pants, a dark blue woolly sweater, and the same dumb shiny white shoes tied on with straps.
“Aren’t you getting your bathing suit on, Ginette?” Miss Bonny asked.
Ginette shook her head. “No swim,” she muttered. It was the first time Sophie had heard her speak. Her voice was low and husky and sounded strange coming from such a small person. Sophie wondered if she was afraid of water or just didn’t have a swimsuit.
The girl was crouched on a rock, her camp hat pulled low over her eyes, arms hugging her knees. She looked completely unhappy.
Miss Rosy appeared concerned and gently patted her back. “You can sit and wait here on the rock and watch for now, okay?”
The girl frowned and stared at her feet.
The beach was rocky, but the rocks were smooth for the most part, so they didn’t hurt Sophie’s bare feet too much as she gingerly followed Miss Rosy and the other girls to the water’s edge.
“Now, girls,” Miss Bonny cautioned, “when you’re swimming, it’s especially important to stay with your buddy at all times, no matter what.”
Sophie shot a look at Ginette, who was still crouched on a rock.
“It’s okay, Sophie,” Miss Rosy said. “I’ll be your buddy this time.”
The swimming lesson wasn’t so much a lesson as a free swim, with everyone showing Miss Bonny how far they could swim on their backs, then on their fronts. Sophie splashed around with the other girls in the cool water.
“Don’t splash me!” Elizabeth squealed as she tiptoed into the shallow water.
Margaret squealed, too.
“Sorry,” Sophie said. “I didn’t mean to. You guys should just get wet all over, then you won’t feel the splashes so much.”
“But the water’s so freezing,” Elizabeth said.
“It’s great once you get used to it,” Sophie said, clunking under the water again. “Come on in,” she said, spitting out salty water toward Elizabeth.
But Elizabeth shook her head, and she and Margaret ventured in just up to their knees, screeching at each other.
Sophie had learned how to swim the summer before in a small pool at Mackin Park, but that was in freshwater. Swimming in this salty water was easier in a way, because the water seemed to make her float better, but small waves kept rolling her toward the shore. When she licked her lips, they tasted salty. Most of the other girls could swim a bit, and the water wasn’t over anyone’s head.
“No one is allowed past the end of the ramp,” Miss Bonny told them. “The water gets too deep near the dock, and I want to keep my eyes on all of you.”
“Let’s join hands and sing ’Ring Around the Rosie,’” Miss Rosy said. “Come on, Elizabeth and Margaret.”
Sophie held on to Miss Rosy’s and Margaret’s hands and sang, “Ring around the rosie.” At “we all fall down” all the girls dunked under the water. Margaret and Elizabeth grabbed each other and really squealed, but at last they were all wet.
“Okay, show me your stuff,” Miss Bonny said. “Show me how far you can swim on your back.”
Sophie anxiously waited for
an opportunity to slip over to the dock to search for her Star Girl ball. She worried that someone would find it before she did. So when Miss Rosy was watching a group of splashing, laughing girls, Sophie began to make her way toward the dock. She was stopped in her tracks by Miss Rosy calling her back.
“How about showing me how far you can swim on your side, Sophie?”
Disappointed, Sophie waded back to the girls and began swimming. Then, finally, the lesson was over.
“Everyone out of the water now,” Miss Bonny called. “Come on, you two,” she said to Elizabeth and Margaret, who were flicking water at each other and giggling. “Come and dry off. It’s time for your canoe lesson.”
“But we just got in!” Margaret protested.
“You’ll have plenty of time for swimming this week. So out of the water now,” Miss Bonny said firmly.
Sophie bolted out of the water, snatched up her towel, and dried her legs and feet. Then she quickly pulled the towel around her back, shoved her feet into her sandals, and scurried up the beach toward the ramp leading to the dock.
“Hold your horses, Sophie,” Miss Rosy called after her. “Wait for the rest of us.”
Frustration surged through Sophie. At this rate she would never find her ball! Reluctantly she headed to the flagpole with the other girls.
“Okay, campers,” Miss Bonny said, “you must stay with your buddy during this activity, as well. Line up, please.”
Sophie stood next to Ginette, who still ignored her. Whenever Sophie glanced at the girl or tried to talk to her, she looked away. Some buddy! Buddies were supposed to be fun. Sophie stared at Elizabeth. Would she and Margaret ever stop giggling together?
In pairs the girls followed Miss Bonny down the ramp, which was still very steep in the low water.
“Hold on to the railings so you won’t fall into the drink,” Miss Rosy told them.
On the dock Mr. Buzz greeted them with a grin that twitched his small animal moustache. He pushed his glasses up on his nose, clapped his hands, and asked, “Now who’s ready for the thrill of a lifetime?”
“Me! Me! Me!” the girls shouted, making the dock sway as they jumped around.
“Okay. But first, a few rules. Number one, never, ever, get into a boat, especially a canoe, without your life preserver. Canoes are tippy, and you never know when one could flip right over and toss you into the water. Without a life preserver to keep you afloat, even the best swimmer would be in danger of drowning.”
It was funny to watch him. As he spoke, his furry moustache wobbled and quivered, and his head bobbed up and down so much that it was hard to concentrate on what he was saying.
Sophie forced herself to frown so she wouldn’t start giggling, but Elizabeth caught her eye. She grinned and wiggled her eyebrows up and down. The giggles burst out of Sophie’s mouth like pop out of a shaken bottle. Elizabeth and Margaret began laughing, too.
“What could possibly be so funny?” Mr. Buzz asked as he and Miss Bonny passed out the bulky orange life preservers.
Sophie rubbed her face and swallowed hard. She gazed into the water and managed to stop laughing. A glint of yellow caught her eye. Was that her Star Girl ball?
“Here’s yours, Sophie,” Miss Bonny said, passing Sophie a life preserver. “What’s so interesting down there in the water?”
“Nothing,” Sophie said, pulling the life preserver over her head, crossing the straps in the back, and tying them firmly around her waist in front. “Just a bit of seaweed.”
Ginette was tying on her life preserver, as well, though she was still scowling. Was she actually going to participate in this activity? Sophie wondered. That would be a change.
Sophie peered into the water again. When they arrived, their boat had come in about halfway along the dock. That was where her ball must have fallen in. She knelt and leaned over the edge. Bright green seaweed grew on the submerged part of the wooden dock, where two purple starfish and several clumps of black clams were nestled. A small school of shiny minnows flicked their tails and swam into the darkness under the dock. But there was no sign of her ball. It must have sunk to the bottom, or maybe it had drifted under the dock.
“Ah, another bunch of keen canoeists, I see,” Mr. Buzz said, rubbing his hands together, wobbling his furry moustache, and bobbing his head. “A bit giggly, but keen. Now be sure you’ve tied those life preservers nice and tight. Okay, how many do we have here?” The girls all stood in a line as he counted them. “Sixteen. Perfect, since we have eight boats. How many of you have paddled a canoe before?”
Two girls from cabin three who were buddies put up their hands.
“Great!” Mr. Buzz said, bobbing and weaving his head and twitching his moustache.
Sophie tried not to gawk at him. She knew she would start giggling again if she did, so she stared hard at the canoes instead. Lined up in a row along the dock, they were varnished wood inside and painted green on the outside, with two wooden seats in each boat, one in front and the other toward the back.
“You two can be our volunteers for the demonstration,” Mr. Buzz said to the girls from cabin three.
The girls stepped forward to get into a boat.
“When you get in or out of a boat, always do it one person at a time, and always step right in the middle of the boat. Perfect. You’re doing great.” Mr. Buzz handed a wooden paddle to each girl. “The proper way to hold a canoe paddle is one hand here, about a foot down from the top, and your other hand right here on the top. That way you won’t end up socking yourself in the nose like this. Oof!” As he demonstrated, his moustache almost fell off his upper lip. All the girls, including Sophie, exploded with laughter.
“What a pile of gigglers you girls are!” he said. “All right. With your buddies I want you to get into your boats, one girl in front at the bow, and one in the back at the stern. Don’t forget to step into the middle of the canoe. One at a time. Excellent, excellent. A bunch of pros.”
Sophie wasn’t sure if Ginette was going to join in, so she watched her. Ginette had tied on the life preserver and she had practised holding the paddle correctly. Then, without any hesitation, she climbed into the front of a canoe.
Stepping gingerly into the canoe, too, Sophie moved to the back seat as the canoe rocked precariously in the water. She sat down quickly and gripped her paddle. Balancing in the canoe was sort of like balancing when riding a bike.
“Now, you’ve probably noticed that these boats are much smaller than your regular canoe,” Mr. Buzz was saying as each pair settled into a boat. “They’re singles and usually paddled by one person, but we find they’re perfect for kids like you to learn. Two more bits of advice. You can sit down on the seat and paddle if the water’s calm, but you’ll find that the boat will feel more stable if you kneel. And the other thing is—don’t go past the end of the dock or out of this cove. Just paddle around here in the shallow water until you get a feel for the boat. Hey! You’re all doing just great! Oh, one other thing. You should always paddle on opposite sides. If the front person paddles on the right side, that’s the starboard, the back person should be paddling on the left. We call that the port. That way your boat won’t be so tippy.”
Sophie switched to her left side, since Ginette was paddling hard on the right.
“This is so fun!” Elizabeth squealed.
“Major fun!” Margaret squealed back, almost bashing into Sophie and Ginette’s canoe.
Sophie had to paddle furiously backward to avoid a crash. The most difficult part so far was avoiding smashing into the other canoes in the narrow cove.
After they paddled around for a while, Mr. Buzz said, “Okay, you guys. Time’s up. Paddle over here to the dock and we’ll help you out. One person at a time.”
Ginette kept on paddling like a windmill in a storm. Each time Sophie tried to aim the boat toward the dock, Ginette hurriedly paddled in the other direction.
“We’ve got to go back to the dock!” Sophie shouted at her. “Look, all the other girls ar
e getting out now.”
Ginette didn’t turn around or even acknowledge Sophie.
Mr. Buzz called out to them, “Hey, you two. Come on in. Now.”
“Come on, Ginette,” Sophie said. “Stop paddling us away from the dock.” She tried to make the canoe turn, but it wouldn’t go where she wanted it to.
Mr. Buzz had to call them again. Finally Ginette started to paddle toward the dock. They were the last boat in. Sophie couldn’t understand why Ginette was acting like that.
Miss Bonny held their boat steady against the side of the dock while Sophie got out, followed by Ginette. “You certainly liked that canoeing, I see,” Miss Bonny said, raising her eyebrows at Ginette.
Ginette scowled as she handed her the life preserver.
“It was really fun,” Sophie said. “Can we go paddling again tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow and every day this week,” Miss Bonny said. “You’ll all be experts by the end of the week.”
Ginette was looking so intently at the canoes that she seemed unaware of anyone around her.
“What are you thinking about?” Sophie asked, hoping the girl would begin talking to her.
Ginette shook her head and shrugged. “Nothing,” she muttered in her strange, low voice.
FIVE
“Come on, campers,” Miss Rosy said. “You’ll have to hustle out of your wet duds and into the shower before supper. And, yes, everyone does have to have a shower. Hustle, hustle, hustle! Twenty-four skidoo!”
Sophie trooped back to cabin four with her cabin mates for a dry towel and a change of clothes. Instead of heading straight for the shower, though, she had to wait for Ginette to rifle through her battered duffle bag for dry clothes.
“You have to shower before supper, Ginette,” Sophie told her when it seemed as if the girl was just going to sit around on her bunk. “Miss Rosy said everyone has to have a shower. Come on. I don’t want to wait all day.” Sophie hopped from one foot to the other impatiently.
Sophie's Friend in Need Page 3
