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Authors: Suzy Kline

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BOOK: Horrible Harry and the Holidaze

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M
onday morning, we all walked four blocks up the hill to Shady Pines. Harry and I were partners. It was fun to wear our boots and crunch in the snow.

“It looks like a haunted house,” Sid said.

When Harry held up a fist and muttered, “Knock it off, Sid the Squid,” I smiled. He was starting to be his old self again.

When we walked into the nursing home, it seemed like we were in someone's living room. There were couches and chairs, and a vase of flowers on a coffee table. A lady at the desk greeted us.

“Good morning, boys and girls. Welcome to Shady Pines. I'm Mrs. Pepper, the administrator.”

“Look! They've got a Christmas tree!” Ida exclaimed.

Harry pointed to the dryboard next to it. There were lots of words written in different colors. “See this schedule for December? It tells about all the things going on at Shady Pines. Grampa likes the music programs best because he gets lots of refreshments. He still loves to eat!”

Mrs. Pepper laughed. “Please follow me to the activity room.”

When we got there it was full of elderly people sitting in wheelchairs. “Hi Grampa!” Harry called as he rushed over to him.

Harry kneeled down by his wheelchair and gave him a big hug. “This is my grampa,” he said proudly.

“H ... h ... hi,” Harry's grampa said.

“He stutters now, after his stroke,” Harry said matter-of-factly. “This is his roommate Elmer. He wears a bike helmet because he gets seizures sometimes and has to protect his head when he falls.”

Mrs. Pepper beamed. “Harry has gotten to know our clients quite well in the past two weeks. He's a regular visitor!”

Mary's mom, Mrs. Berg, patted Harry on the back. She was one of our chaperones.

“Take off your hats and coats, boys and girls,” Mrs. Pepper said. “And help yourself to some cocoa and cookies at the refreshment table.”

“Thank you!” we said. I took a sugar cookie with rainbow sprinkles.

A lot of the older people spilled cocoa when they drank, but it didn't matter because they were wearing long white bibs.

While people were snacking, Mary's mother announced, “We would like to do an activity with you that we do during Hanukkah. That's a Jewish holiday we usually celebrate in December.”

“I know about Hanukkah,” a lady said. She was wearing a blonde wig that didn't sit on her head quite right. “I'm Jewish. It's when we celebrate the miracle of the oil lasting eight days in the temple.”

“I'm Jewish, too,” said a man wearing a blue bow tie. “But my favorite part of Hanukkah is eating fried foods like potato pancakes to remind us of the oil miracle.”

“Yes!”. Mrs. Berg replied. “The latkes! Mmmmm!

“Our activity is playing the dreidel game. There are four sides to a dreidel,” she explained as she handed some to Mary, Ida, and Song Lee to pass out. “Each side has a different Hebrew letter. Together they stand for âA Great Miracle Happened There.' I'll draw them on this dryboard.

“We learned a song that explains the rules. Ready, boys and girls, to sing?” Mrs. Berg asked.

All of us stopped eating, and sang:

“Oh, dreidel, dreidel, dreidel,
I made it out of clay,
And when my dreidel's ready,
Oh, dreidel I will play.

I'll take my little dreidel
And give it a good strong spin.
I hope it lands on gimmel
For then I'm sure to win.

If I spin hay, I take half,
But none if I spin nun.
I get the pot with gimmel,
With shin I must pay one.”

Few of the elderly could clap for us, but I could tell by their shiny eyes they enjoyed it. Mary gave each of us four gold-wrapped chocolate coins from her basket.

“This is gelt,” she said. “What you put in the pot when you play dreidel.”

“Tha-that's like po-po-po-poker,” Harry's grampa said.

“Yes!” Mary replied.

Harry beamed. “We know how to play that, huh Grampa!”

“We su-su-sure d-d-do.”

Mrs. Berg held up a hand. “Okay! The students will partner up with people here at Shady Pines. They've been practicing in class, so they know how to play. There's just one more rule. Share your chocolate winnings!”

Harry and I played with his grampa and Elmer at the end of one long table. We each put one piece of gelt in the pot. I spun the dreidel first. “Nun,” I groaned.

Elmer adjusted his bike helmet, then spun next. He got nun also.

Harry spun the top for his grampa. “Shin,” he said. “You have to put one in.” Harry put a candy in the pot for his grampa and then took a turn. He spun the dreidel real hard.

“Gimmel! Yahoo! I take all the candies.”

“Sh-sh-sh ...” his grampa said.

“Yeah, I know, Grampa,” Harry replied. “I have to
share
the chocolate winnings!”

After we unwrapped the chocolate and popped some in our mouths, Harry flashed a toothy smile at me and his grampa. It didn't gross me out that his teeth had chocolate on them. It was great to see my buddy smiling again.

After we read stories and poems to the elderly, we danced and sang to Elvis's Christmas music:

Here comes Santa Claus
Here comes Santa Claus
Right down Santa Claus Lane ...

When it was time to leave Shady Pines, we all said good-bye to our dreidel partners. Harry gave his grampa a big hug. Then he slapped him five.

On our way downhill back to school, I heard Sidney say, “That was no haunted house. Man, that was a fun house!”

Flying High for Korean New Year's

T
uesday morning when we walked into class, we noticed Song Lee's mom, Mrs. Park, hanging up Korean clothes in front of the blackboard. She also had placed a kite and a board game on the chalk tray.

After the bell rang, Miss Mackle beamed. “Today Mrs. Park is here to help us learn about the Korean New Year. Song Lee, do you want to help her?”

Song Lee hurried up to the front of the room and hid behind her mother. We didn't see much of her, just her shoes and left ear.

Mrs. Park didn't force Song Lee to talk. Miss Mackle didn't either. Mrs. Park did most of the talking. “I bring board game called
yut
(yoot). Family play game on Korean New Year. It is holiday gift from us to you.”

We clapped and cheered as she held up four wooden sticks and a board. “Each stick has four side. Three curve, one flat. You toss stick in air, and hope it land on flat side. When stick land on flat side, you move token on board.”

“Dibs on playing with Song Lee!” Harry said jumping out of his seat.

Miss Mackle motioned for Harry to sit down. “Later, Harry. Let's find out more about the Korean New Year.”

“Well,” Mrs. Park said reaching for the outfit on the hanger. “Children get dressed up in
hanbok.”
We all stared at the rainbow-colored suit made out of silk with a short jacket. “I put on Song Lee now.”

You could hear a pin drop as we watched Song Lee step into the beautiful costume.

Harry was half off his desk.

“On Korean New Year, we honor ancestor. Children visit old family and bow to show respect,” Mrs. Park said. “Girl bow on one knee. Song Lee, please show class.”

We watched Song Lee step in front of her mother, bow and kneel on one knee.

“Boy bow on both knee,” Mrs. Park explained.