When we woke up the next morning we all felt very busy. It made the day
seem funny.

It made every day that happened seem funny.

Every day somebody took somebody's pencil and ran away! My Mother
couldn't find anything! Not children! Not pencils!

Rosalee took the Dictionary Book besides.

"Anybody'd think," said my Father, "that this was a Graduation Essay you
were making instead of just a simple little word-picture for a Blinded
Lady!"

"Word-picture?" said Rosalee. "What I'm trying to make is a Peacock
Feather Fan!"

"I wish there were three prizes instead of two!" said my Mother.

"Why?" said my Father.

Carol came and kicked his feet on the door. His hands were full of
stones. He wanted a drink of water. All day long when he wasn't sitting
under the old Larch Tree with a pencil in his mouth he was carrying
stones! And kicking his feet on the door! And asking for a drink of
water!

"Whatever in the world," said my Mother, "are you doing with all those
stones?"

Carol nodded his head that I could tell.

"He's building something," I said. "Out behind the barn!--I don't know
what it is!"

Carol dropped his stones. He took a piece of chalk. He knelt down on the
kitchen floor. He wrote big white letters on the floor.

"It's an Ar--Rena," is what he wrote.

"An Arena?" said my Mother. "An _Arena_?" She looked quite sorry. "Oh
Laddie!" she said. "I did so want you to win a prize!--_Couldn't_ you
have kept your mind on it just a day or two longer?"

It was the longest week I ever knew! It got longer every day! Thursday
was twice as long as Wednesday! I don't seem to remember about Friday!
But Saturday came so early in the morning I wasn't even awake when my
Mother called me!

We went to the Blinded Lady's house right after dinner. We couldn't wait
any longer.

The Blinded Lady pretended she was surprised to see us.

"Mercy me!" she said. "What? Have these children come again? Muddy feet?
Chatter? And all?" She thumped her cane! She rocked her chair! She
billowed her skirts!

We weren't frightened a bit! We sat on the edge of our chairs and
laughed! And laughed!

There was a little white table spread with pink-frosted cookies! There
were great crackly glasses of raspberry vinegar and ice! Old Mary had on
a white apron!--That's why we laughed! We _knew_ we were expected!

My Father explained it to everybody.

"As long as Carol couldn't speak his piece," he said, "It didn't seem
fair that any o