FOR HONOR

Tom's posse of neighborhood boys gather in his back yard. Today, they are ninjas. A couple of the boys, including Tom, have karate outfits. The others wear robes and strips of cloth tied around their heads. They have all kinds of weapons. A couple have wooden swords. One has his pockets full of pine cones. One boy has plastic nunchaku. Another has a lightsaber. One just has a long stick.

"Ok, boys, The emperor's daughter has been kidnapped, and is guarded by a fiend most foul." Tom points up to the treehouse where Lily, wearing a kimono, waves down at them. Tom's dog, next to her, barks.

"His death shall be swift!" says Daniel.

"I shall save the damsel and bring honor on my family!" says Johnny.

"Where's Jim?"

Jim runs into the yard carrying a plastic sai. He wears glasses. "Sorry, guys. I had to go to the eye doctor."

"You have to wear glasses?" asks Ted.

"Yeah. The doctor says I'm nearsighted," says Jim.

"Fellow ninjas, we must be careful not to break Jim's glasses. Now, for honor!" says Tom.

"For honor!" repeats the posse.

The boys fight each other and try to scramble up the ladder to the treehouse without be pulled down by the others. Ted pulls Jim down and scrambles up. Jim's glasses fall off.

"STOP!" yells Tom. All the boys stop while Tom helps Jim up and gives him his glasses. "Ok, go!" The fight continues.

Johnny monkeys up the treehouse rope, slays the fiend, and saves the princess. In other words, he drops the pine cones around the dog, tells him to play dead, and screams, "FOR HONOR!" while leading Lily back down the rope.


Elizabeth Williamson Copyright © 2011

JUST A SHEEP

"Why does Tom get to be the angel?" asked Lily. "Angels are girls."

"The angel that came to Mary and Joseph was a boy," said their mother.

Tom and Lily put on their costumes for the community Christmas program. Tom was radiant in his angel outfit. Lily was a cute sheep.

"All I get to be is a sheep. Where's the glory in that?"

"We need the sheep for the shepherds," said their mother.

"Yeah, but the sheep could be cardboard and no one would care. I'm only a sheep so they can feel better about themselves for giving me a part."

They got in the car and their father drove them to one of the local churches where the program was to be held. Lily grumbled the whole way.

Parents filed in and took their seats. Backstage was crowded with children. A friend of Tom's went out to start the program as the narrator.

"The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a virgin named Mary."

The girl playing Mary went onto the stage, followed by Tom, who told her she was to have a baby named Jesus. Then, he visited Joseph and told him to marry Mary because she would give birth to the Son of God.

Tom waited backstage with Lily while Mary and Joseph traveled to Bethlehem.

"Baa. That's all I get to say."

"The Savior is the good shepherd. We are all sheep, Lily. God loves his sheep. That's why His Son was born. You, like the Baby Jesus, represent God's love," said Tom.

Lily never thought about it like that. Sheep were more important than she realized, not as important as an angel, but still important.

"And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flocks by night."

The shepherds and sheep, including Lily, go out on stage. "Baa," said Lily and the other sheep. She smiled as Tom came out to announce the Savior's birth.

"Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord."

Elizabeth Williamson Copyright © 2010

TOM'S SEARCH FOR GOLD

Tom's posse of neighborhood boys gathered at the tree house, their heads covered with a variety of green hats. Tom, wearing a felt green top hat with a paper clover stuck to it, called the boys to attention. "Lads, today we follow the rainbow to the pot o' gold awaitin' there for us."

"But, Tom, there's no rainbow," said Ted.

"Nae, no' yet, but the wind's a blowin' in a storm."

"But if it's a storm how will the sun shine through to make the rainbow?" asked Johnny.

"It has come to my attention, lads, that we be a mite shy o' the faith necessary to find our pot o' gold," said Tom.

The wind blew a few shy raindrops their way. Tom looked up to the sky and turned away from the sun. He pointed in the distance. "That way, lads."

The ragtag group of boys followed Tom out of the yard. They walked for a couple blocks and stop at a house with a U-Haul in the drive. Tom removed his hat and bowed low to a woman carrying a lamp in each land. The other boys attempted to bow as well.

"You are the good lady of the house?"

The woman smiled at the boys. "I'm Mrs. Peterson, and that," she nodded her head to a man trying to unload a couch from the truck, "is Mr. Peterson."

"I am Tom, and this is my posse." Mrs. Peterson's smile broadened as Tom's hand took in the group of boys. "Our rainbow has led us to you." Tom turned to the boys and pointed at Mr. Peterson, still struggling with the couch. "Lads, the pot o' gold lies yonder. Let us get it before the opportunity passes us by."

Tom and the boys crowded around the couch lifted it up for Mr. Peterson. He laughed gratefully. They maneuvered the couch, as best as young boys could control a large piece of furniture, into the Peterson's new home. The boys panted and patted each other on the back and ran out to the truck to bring in more things.

As the boys worked, they were joined by other neighbors, and a bucket brigade was formed from the truck to the living room. The U-Haul was emptied in short order, and the boys went inside to ask Mrs. Peterson if they could take the boxes in the living room to the other parts of the house. Mrs. Peterson laughed and agreed to let them help her.

Tom carried a box to a door in the hall. Mrs. Peterson had asked him to be quiet and to just leave the box outside. He was tempted to open the door to see what was inside, but he shook his head and turned away, but he stopped as a weak young voice called out, "Mom?"

Tom was stunned. He pressed his ear against the door. "Mom?" called the voice again. Tom took hold of the doorknob and opened the door a crack and peaked in. There was not much to see, a pile of boxes and the foot of a bed. Tom opened the door a little further, and poked his head around it to see the whole room.

In the bed lay a boy about Tom's age. "Who are you?"

"I'm Tom. I'm helping your mom and dad. What's your name?"

The boy sighed. "I'm Corby. I wish I could help."

"Are you sick?"

Corby shook his head. "My leg's broken."

"How did you break it?"

"I broke it while ice skating."

"You can ice skate? Cool!"

Corby smiled. "It's easy, and a lot of fun."

"When your leg gets better, you can teach me and the posse how to skate."

"The posse?"

"My gang. Would you like to meet them?"

"Yes."

"I'll be back in a tick." Tom runs out of the room to find Mrs. Peterson. She was unpacking the kitchen. "Mrs. Peterson, can the boys meet Corby?"

She looks up from the box she is emptying. "Corby?"

"He called for you."

She sighed. "Alright."

Tom collected his posse from throughout the house and they all piled into Corby's room.

"Lads, we have found our pot o' gold. This is Corby."

Elizabeth Williamson Copyright © 2010

KING TOM

Golden summer days... Actually what made them so golden was the fact there was no school. From June to September there was nothing but sweet freedom. Tom and his posse gloried in their freedom. They played all day long and only went inside to eat and sleep.

Those whose mothers insisted on them doing daily chores would get up early and rush through them and be done before their mothers were out of bed. They would eat breakfast and the boys would meet up and the treehouse in Tom's backyard by eight. Then the fun would begin.

On this particular day, the boys had decided to play Camelot. Tom, of course, was King Arthur. The other boys filled in as his knights of the round table. The boys wore a variety of shiny armor, shimmery cloth, aluminum foil, tin can lids, and whatever else they could find. Their helmets were whatever they could get on their heads, pans, boxes, buckets, one boy even had a football helmet. Their swords were mostly plastic or wood. Daniel had a lightsaber.

"Honored knights of the round table, I welcome you here today with some grave news," said Tom.

"What does that mean?" asked Ted.

"It means bad," said Daniel.

"Right," said Tom. "The Lady of the Lake has been gobbled up by a dragon."

The boys all gasped. "Not the Lady of the Lake! Why didn't se use her powers?" said Johnny.

"She tried in vain. The dragon would not rest until he had his dinner," said Tom. "Our task is to go to the dragon's lair and fight it to the death."

"What if we're killed?" said Steve.

"Then you will die in glory and honor, and we will always remember your sacrifice for a just cause," said Tom.

The boys made their plans of vengeance and slipped quietly down the pole of the treehouse. Whispering and telling each other to shush, they approached the dog house.

"The beast sleepeth. It will be an easy kill," whispered Tom to his knights.

They nod and spread out around the sleeping dog. Jim dropped his sword. Tom's dog woke and stretched and padded over to Tom, his tail wagging.

The boys panicked. They couldn't let the dragon slay their king. They all charged the dog at once. The dog jumped out of the way, and ran around and barked playfully at the pile of boys.

Tom shook his head at his knights and thrust his sword, gently, in the dragon's ribcage. "Play dead," he ordered his dog. The dog obeyed.

"Knights! We have slayed the dragon! We are victorious this day! Our adventure shall be sung in song and story for centuries to come!" said Tom.

The boys all stabbed the air with their swords, and in one case a lightsaber, and shouted, "Glory to Camelot!"

The dog jumped up and barked. Tom gave him a hug, and got him a treat for playing dead.

The boys boasted of their conquest and went back up to the treehouse to plan their next feat.



Elizabeth Williamson Copyright © 2009

TOM

"Avast ye land lubbers! Hoist that sail!" shouted Tom to his posse of neighborhood boys. The six boys tied up an old sheet they had gotten from Tom's mother in the branches above the tree house.

All the boys were sporting various hats and eye patches, some made of paper, some made of cloth. They were also wearing the raggiest clothes they could find. Poor Daniel stood out like a sore thumb. His mother never let his clothes get ragged, despite his protests.

"Where we be sailin' to this mornin' cap'n?" asked first mate Johnny.

"We be sailin' to Jamaica! There be a village to pillage! Let's shove off!"

"Aye Cap'n!" shouted the boys.

Tom's dog, having seen Tom, jumped up and barked.

"Cap'n! There be a dog shark off the port bow!" shouted lookout Steve.

"We'll harpoon it, and have it for dinner!"

"Dinner!" shouted the boys.

"Uh, Cap'n? What's a harpoon?" asked Ted.

"A nautical weapon! It's got a pointy end and a rope attached to it, to reel in the kill!"

"Oh, we don't have one then," said Ted.

"Arr! This be bad luck boys! We'll have to go without dinner!"

"Very bad!" shouted the boys.

As Tom and his crew of fearsome pirates sailed to Jamaica, Tom's dog watched from the base of the tree. Whenever he saw Tom's face over the railing, he would stand up and bark. Being a dog, he didn't care about their game, but he did want to play with Tom.

"Hello puppy," said Lily, Tom's younger sister. She patted his head and scratched his ears. "Do you want to play too?"

He wagged his tail and barked affirmatively.

Lily laughed. "Maybe we can play together."

"AHOY CAP'N!" shouted a voice from above. "THERE BE A MONSTER WITH THE SHARK!"

Tom leaned over the rail to see.

"We want to play too, Tom!" shouted Lily to her brother.

He frowned as shouts of "NO GIRLS!" and "She'll just want to dress up and have tea!" and "She'll take over the ship and turn it into a love boat or something, like my sister always does!" and "Girls can't be pirates!" peppered his ears. Tom liked playing with his sister, but he was worried the boys would leave if he invited her up.

He had an idea. "Mermaid off the port bow!" he shouted. "The sea gods be smilin' on us today!"

"Why, Cap'n?" asked Jim.

"Why? Every sailor knows a mermaid brings good luck! Lower the dingy and bring her and the shark up! No one would dare stop us with them aboard!"

The boys hesitated only for a moment, and lowered the lift for Lily and the dog.



Elizabeth Williamson Copyright © 2008