COURTESY OF THE WAYNE COUNTY LIBRARY, WHERE I RENT BOOKS FROM.
COMES THE STORIES FROM "STORIES YOU WON'T BELIEVE" BY LONNIE E. BROWN.
THIS STORY IS ONE OF MANY STORIES, IT'S TITLED, AN "EXPLOSIVE IDEA."
"EXPLOSIVE IDEA"
EVEN THOUGH I LEARNED MY LESSON ABOUT MATCHES WHEN I BURNED THE SAGEBRUSH FIELD, I STILL HAD A THING OR TWO TO LEARN ABOUT FIREWORKS.
WHEN I WAS A BOY, FIREWORKS WERE LEGAL IN KENTUCKY, SO FIRECRACKERS WERE EASY TO COME BY. WHAT I REALLY LIKED WERE CHERRY BOMBS. THEY WERE LOUD AND POWERFUL AND SHOOK EVERYTHING AROUND THEM WHEN THEY WERE SET OFF.
I STILL HAD SEVERAL LEFT-OVER FROM THE FOURTH OF JULY WHEN SCHOOL WAS WELL UNDERWAY ONE FALL. IT WAS COLD ENOUGH TO HAVE A FIRE IN THE BIG POT-BELLIED STOVE IN OUR ONE-ROOM SCHOOL, AND MR. GRADY, THE TEACHER, APPOINTED TWO DIFFERENT BOYS EACH DAY TO BE IN CHARGE OF BUILDING THE FIRE EACH MORNING.
THE DAY CAME WHEN MY FRIEND ED AND I WERE SELECTED TO BE THE FIRE-STARTERS. IT WAS A DAY WHEN I REALLY DID NOT WANT TO BE AT SCHOOL. MY DAD AND A COUPLE OF HIS FRIENDS HAD PLANNED TO GO HUNTING AND I WANTED TO GO WITH THEM.
"YOU HAVE TO GO TO SCHOOL, SON," DAD TOLD ME. "MAYBE WE CAN GO HUNTING OVER THE WEEKEND.
I DIDN'T WANT TO WAIT UNTIL THE WEEKEND. I WANTED TO GO TODAY. THE SUN WAS SHINING, AND THERE WAS JUST ENOUGH NIP IN THE AIR TO LURE ANY SELF-RESPECTING BOY FROM A STUFFY SCHOOLROOM. THE THOUGHT OCCURRED TO ME THAT, EVEN THOUGH I MIGHT HAVE TO GO TO SCHOOL, I DIDN'T HAVE TO STAY. I FELT THE CHERRY BOMBS IN MY POCKET AND I GOT AN IDEA. MAYBE I COULD DO SOMETHING TO MAKE MR. GRADY SEND US ALL HOME. I THOUGHT A MILD EXPLOSION IN THE STOVE MIGHT MAKE HIM THINK SOMETHING WAS WRONG AND THAT HE WOULD SEND US HOME UNTIL HE COULD CHECK IT OUT.
MR. GRADY RANG THE BELL AND THE STUDENTS TOOK THEIR SEATS. ED AND I WENT TO THE STOVE TO START THE FIRE, WHILE MR. GRADY HAD THE STUDENTS BEGIN THEIR WORK. WE SOON HAD THE FIRE GOING AND I PULLED THE CHERRY BOMBS FROM MY POCKET AND REVEALED THEM TO ED. I POINTED TOWARD THE STOVE. ED'S EYES GOT BIG AND HE SHOOK HIS HEAD, BUT HE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING TO DRAW MR. GRADY'S ATTENTION. HE JUST STEPPED BACK AS I TOSSED THE CHERRY BOMBS INTO THE STOVE. THEN BOTH OF US HURRIED TO OUR SEATS.
I THINK OUR HURRY TO SIT DOWN MIGHT HAVE MADE MR. GRADY SUSPICIOUS. HE TURNED AROUND AND LOOKED AT US JUST AS THE CHERRY BOMBS EXPLODED -- BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
HE MIGHT HAVE THOUGHT IT WAS JUST SOMETHING IN THE WOOD, EXCEPT THE EXPLOSION WAS SO LOUD IT SHOOK THE STOVE AND BLEW THE STOVE DOOR OPEN. SPARKS AND BURNING COALS FLEW. ALL OVER THE FLOOR NEAR THE STOVE AND STUDENTS JUMPED AND RAN SCREAMING FROM THEIR SEATS.
I DON'T REMEMBER A LOT OF WHAT HAPPENED NEXT. EVERYTHING ELSE WAS A BIG BLUR AS MY GOOD SENSE TOOK OVER AND FOCUSED ON ONE THING. I KNEW I WAS IN BIG TROUBLE!
MR. GRADY BEAT OUT THE FLAMES AND SETTLED THE STUDENTS BACK IN THEIR SEATS. THEN HE BEAT MY BOTTOM AND SETTLED ME IN THE CORNER FACING THE WALL. HE STARTED TO DO THE SAME TO ED, BUT I SAVED HIM BY CONFESSING THAT I WAS THE ONE WHO'D DONE IT. ED STILL WASN'T OFF THE HOOK, THOUGH, BECAUSE HE KNEW AND DIDN'T TELL WHAT I WAS GOING TO DO. MR. GRADY KEPT US BOTH IN AT RECESS AND MADE US WORK WHILE EVERYBODY ELSE GOT TO GO OUTSIDE AND ENJOY THE PERFECT AUTUMN DAY.
THE WORSE PART WAS AFTER SCHOOL WHEN MR. GRADY DROVE ME HOME TO TELL MY PARENTS.
"WHAT ON EARTH MADE YOU DO SUCH A THING?" DAD WANTED TO KNOW. "YOU COULD HAVE BURNED THE SCHOOL DOWN."
I HAD NO DEFENSE. I HAD BEEN CAUGHT RED-HANDED.
THE WORST THING WAS THAT I DIDN'T GET TO GO HUNTING ON SATURDAY. DAD TOOK ME OUT TO THE WOODS AND MADE ME CUT ENOUGH WOOD TO LAST THE SCHOOL FOR A MONTH.
AND, OF COURSE, IT GOES WITHOUT SAYING, I WAS NOT ALLOWED TO HAVE CHERRY BOMBS FOR A LONG, LONG TIME!
WRITTEN BY: LONNIE E. BROWN
COURTESY OF THE LOCAL LIBRARY WHERE I RENT BOOKS.
HOPE YOU ALL ENJOYED IT!
"EXPLOSIVE IDEA' BY MR. BROWN IS FROM HIS BOOK "STORIES YOU WON'T BELIEVE."
02/15/2022