It was a beautiful June Saturday morning in Donnybrook, Maine. Twelve-year-old Ashley Enright had gotten up early (even if it was a Saturday!) She thought to herself, as she went downstairs to the kitchen, “I don’t want to waste a minute of my summer vacation!” She was startled by the sound of the ringing telephone on the kitchen wall. She quickly picked it up before it rang again and disturbed her parents or younger sister, Kelly who were all still sleeping upstairs.
“Hello?” she said softly.
“Good morning, dear!” said her beloved grandmother, Gram, on the phone.
“Gram,” said Ashley. “Is anything wrong? Why are you calling so early?”
“Wrong, dear?” Gram said. “No, of course nothing’s wrong, dear. Why would you think that anything’s wrong?”
“Because you’re calling so early in the morning,” Ashley answered.
“Early, dear?” said Gram. “My clock in the kitchen says it’s 10 o’clock. That’s hardly early, dear!”
“Gram,” said Ashley with a sigh. “Your clock must’ve stopped last night. It’s only 7 a.m.”
“Oh dear,” Gram chuckled. “You’re right. I don’t see the second hand running on the clock! Well, no wonder I felt so tired this morning!”
Ashley laughed and said, “Well, if it really was 10 a.m., why were you calling? What’s up?”
“What’s up, dear,” said Gram. “Is a yard sale at one of the homes on Wexner Drive.”
“You mean one of those old houses?” asked Ashley.
“Old houses mean ‘old money,’ my dear,” answered Gram. “We might find something really special!”
“So, I guess you want to go to this sale, right?” asked Ashley.
“Yes, indeed,” Gram answered. “It’s too good to miss!”
“O.k., when do you want to pick me up?” said Ashley.
“Well, the sale starts at 11, so I thought we should get there by 10:45. I was going to pick you up by 10:30,” said Gram.
Ashley laughed and said, “I guess you thought that’d be pretty soon when you looked at your kitchen clock.”
Gram chuckled.
“Why don’t you come over for breakfast?” asked Ashley. “Everyone should be up in a little while. It’ll be a nice way to start the weekend.”
“Great idea, Ashley,” Gram said. “I’ll be there in about a half an hour. Thank you for the invitation, dear.”
“Gram,” said Ashley. “You know you don’t need an invitation!”
“I know, dear,” said Gram. “But, it’s always nice to be asked! I’ll see you in a while.” She said ‘goodbye’ and hung up.
