Copyright 2005 ByBucky Edgett
Toshie and Poppa were playing in the backyard. Poppa picked Toshie up and put her on the top step of the deck stairs. She was almost as tall as Poppa, then.
“Jump, Toshie,” said Poppa. “Jump down and I’ll catch you.”
“NO NO Poppa,” said Toshie. “I’m too high to jump.” Toshie would never jump down from high places. This made Poppa a little bit sad. He knew that if Toshie would jump, she would have fun. But Toshie wouldn’t jump. She never even jumped up and down. She always said that she was scared that she would fall. So, Poppa walked up the deck stairs, and they went inside for supper.
After supper, Poppa gave Toshie her bath. Momma and Baby Nicholas were taking a much needed nap. Toshie got into bed. Poppa quietly read Toshie two stories, then he put out the light and said, “Sleep tight, little one. I love you.”
“I love you too, Poppa,” said Toshie. “And Momma too.”
“And Momma too,” said Poppa. Then he went downstairs to read.
Toshie’s house was very quiet and sleepy. So was Toshie.
Then Toshie woke up.
“Hey, Toshie, look at me!” It was Yowie. Yowie was awake in the middle of the night, when everyone else, even Baby Nicholas, was sound asleep. And now he had woken Toshie.
“Look at me, Toshie,” yelled Yowie. “I’m jumping!” And he was indeed jumping like crazy. First, Yowie jumped up and down. Each time he jumped, he went higher and higher. He jumped as high as the Princess bed. He jumped as high as the bureau. Then he jumped on the bureau! He jumped down from the bureau. He jumped on the window sill. He jumped down from the window sill. Then Yowie jumped out the window!
Toshie slid out of bed and ran to the window. She was just tall enough to look over the sill at the back yard below her. The big shiny Lady Moon made the yard all bright and silvery. And out in the quiet night time yard, Yowie was jumping and jumping.
Yowie jumped from the ground to the deck. He jumped onto the deck railing. He jumped down to the ground and across the yard in two mighty jumps. He jumped up high, then even higher! He jumped up into a tall tree. He jumped from branch to branch, to the top of the tallest tree.
“Watch this, Toshie,” he called. Well, of course Toshie was watching all this. Her eyes were open as big as plates. She saw Yowie jump down from the top of the tallest tree right to the ground. And when he came down: Pow! He landed right on his bottom. Toshie peered down at Yowie, who was lying on the ground. Yowie looked up at Toshie. She heard him say, “Ow! Wow wowie! That hurt!” Then he grinned. Yowie stood up, and brushed off the seat of his pants. He walked inside. When Yowie came back into Toshie’s room, Toshie said, “Oh, Yowie, do you have a hurt?”
“Just a little,” said Yowie. “But it sure is fun to jump.”
“I can jump too, Yowie,” said Toshie. “Look at me jumping.”
And Toshie jumped up and down. She didn’t even hold on to anything. She just jumped and jumped.
“What are you doing?” It was Momma, standing at Toshie’s door. “Toshie, it’s the middle of the night. You should be in bed asleep like a good girl.”
“We’re jumping, Momma. Yowie and I are jumping all around.” But Yowie, of course, was nowhere to be seen, and Toshie and her Momma were all alone in Toshie’s room in the middle of the quiet night.
“Well, darling, I’m glad that Yowie showed you how to jump, but you should wait until the morning when Poppa and the baby aren’t sleeping anymore. Then you can show Poppa how well you can jump.
“But now it’s time for sleep. Hop back in bed.”
“No, no, Momma,” said Toshie. “I’ll jump back in bed.” Toshie jumped as high as she could. She almost made it back in her Princess bed in one jump, and climbed the rest of the way. Yowie was a lot better at jumping than Toshie was, probably because he was much smaller and lighter.
“Good night, sweetheart,” said Momma. “Have a good sleep. I love you.”
“I love you, too, Momma,” said Toshie. “And Poppa. And Nicholas.”
Momma smiled as she went back to her bed. The house was very still in the quiet night. Lady Moon looked sleepily in the window at Toshie.
The Bright Sun shone in Toshie’s window.
“Oh,” said Toshie. She slipped out of bed and padded downstairs to the kitchen. Momma and Baby Nicholas were already awake. They were eating breakfast.
“Good morning, Toshie,” said Momma. “What was that all about last night?”
“Oh, Momma,” said Toshie, “Yowie was in my room and he was jumping and jumping. Then he jumped outside and he jumped into a tree and he jumped right down and got a hurt and he came in my room and we jumped and jumped!”
“I hope you didn’t do anything dangerous, Toshie,” said Momma. “I don’t want to see you get a hurt.”
“No, no, Momma,” aid Toshie. “Yowie got a hurt. I jumped. That’s what we did.”
“What did you do, Peanut?” asked Poppa. He had come into the kitchen and was fixing coffee while Toshie told of Yowie’s jumping.
“I came in the room and she was jumping up and down in the middle of the floor,” said Momma. She and Poppa laughed.
Toshie took Poppa’s hand and said, “Come with me, Poppa.”
“Well, can’t I have some coffee first?” asked Poppa.
“No, no, Poppa,” said Toshie. “Just come with me right now.” And she led him out the kitchen door onto the deck.
“Now go downstairs, Poppa,” said Toshie. Poppa stood on the ground at the bottom of the deck stairs as Toshie told him, “Catch me, Poppa!” She jumped right into his arms.
“Oh, boy,” said Poppa, “What a jump.”
And when they went back into the kitchen for their breakfast, Toshie made a little jump through the door.
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