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  Jess Was The Brave One

Most nights, before Claire and Jess went to sleep,
 Mum or Dad read them a bedtime story.

But when Grandpa put them to bed, he did
not read to them. He told them stories instead.
He told them about men and women who had
done brave deeds.

He told them about William Wilberforece and
Harriet Tubman helping to free the slaves. He
told them about the Duke of Wellington
winning the battle of Waterloo.
Jess usually fell asleep before he finished. But
Claire listened with shining eyes.

Claire longed to be brave. She pretended she
was. She carried her dolls off battlefields and
bandaged their wounds. She hid them from the
slavecatchers. She tried to get Jess to play too.

"Let's pretend that pink Ted has been kidnapped
by bandits," she said to her little sister, "and we
have to risk our lives going to his rescue."
Jess hugged her small, scruffy teddy bear close.

"Bandits wouldn't kidnap a teddy bear," she said.
"I think it's stupid the way you keep pretending
to be brave when you know you're not. I'm going
in to watch TV."

Claire wanted to shout, "I am so brave!" But she
knew she want't. Jess was the brave one.

Jess was brave when they went to the doctor's for
shots. She held her arm out without the doctor's for
"that didn't hurt a bit," she said.
But Dad had to hold Claire's arm tightly or she
would pull it away.

"This will feel like a mosquito bite," the doctor said.
"It doesn't feel like a mosquito," Claire sniffed. "It
feel like a dagger."
"I'm afraid Claire suffers from an overactive
imagination," Dad told the doctor.

Jess was also brave at bedtime. When Mum or
Dad turned out the light and went dowrnstairs,
she shut her eyes and went to sleep.

Claire lay and stared into the darkness. She saw
a black shape hiding behind the door. She
thought she saw it move. She woke Jess.

"Oh, Claire, it's just our bathrobes," Jess said
crossly. "Go to sleep."

Jess was brave when they climbed trees too.
She always scrambled straight up to the top.
Claire usually reached the second branch. Then
she looked down.

"I'm going to fall," she bleated and shut her eyes.
Jess had to climb back down and help her.
"You shouldn't think about falling," Jess said. "I
never do. Just climb."

Jess was also brave when they met fierce dogs.
"Hi, boy," she would say, holding out her fingers
for the dog to sniff.
"jess, DON"T!" Claire would beg.

Next minute the fierce dog would start wagging
its tail and licking Jess's hand.
Then Claire would feel foolish even though she
was positive that, someday, Jess was going to get
bitten to the bone.  
* to be continue~~~~~~~*
    by-Jean Little