I'm Still Scared

Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

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PUFFIN BOOKS

Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Young Readers Group, 345 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, U.S.A.
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Registered Offices: Penguin Books Ltd, 80 Strand, London WC2R ORL, England

 

First published in the United States of America by G. P. Putnam's Sons,
a division of Penguin Young Readers Group, 2006
Published by Puffin Books, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group, 2007

 

Copyright © Tomie dePaola, 2006

All rights reserved

 

THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS HAS CATALOGED THE G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS EDITION AS FOLLOWS:
DePaola, Tomie.

I'm still scared / written and illustrated by Tomie dePaola.
p. cm. - (A 26 Fairmount Avenue book)

eISBN : 978-1-101-00707-5

[1. DePaola, Tomie-Childhood and youth-Juvenile literature.

2. DePaola, Tomie-Homes and haunts-Connecticut-Meriden-Juvenile literature.

3. Authors, American-20th century-Biography-Juvenile literature.

4. Connecticut-Social life and customs-Juvenile literature.

5. World War, 1939-1945-Connecticut-Juvenile literature.

6. Meriden (Conn.)-Biography-Juvenile literature.] I. Title: I'm still scared. II. Title.
PS3554.E11474Z.54-dc22 2005013500

 

 

 

The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume
any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.

“Tomie, Buddy,” Mom called. “Get up and get dressed. We have to go to church. Hurry now. ”

Buddy, my older brother, and I got out of bed, washed up, and got dressed. It was Monday, but we had to go to church. It was a Holy Day. That means that if you're Catholic, like we are, you have to go to church just like on Sunday.

“Come on, boys,” Dad said. “We have to drop off your baby sister Maureen at the Purcells' before going to St. Joseph's.”

The Purcells lived up at the end of Fairmount Avenue. They had a little boy named Jimmy who was just about the same age as Maureen.

The Purcells weren't Catholics, so Mrs. Purcell would watch Maureen while we were at church.

Almost more people were in church than there had been on Sunday. Father O'Connell came down to the altar rail. He was the youngest priest at St. Joseph's in Meriden, Connecticut, where we live. “We will start off this morning by saying the Prayer for Peace,” he said. “You will find a copy of the prayer in your pews.”

Usually the mass is full of music and candles and smells and bells and quiet. This morning, I heard lots of sniffling, like ladies crying and men clearing their throats. I never heard that before!

The Sisters of Mercy who taught at St. Joseph's School were sitting at the front with all the schoolchildren. Buddy and I went to King Street Public School, so we sat with Mom and Dad.

I saw one of the Sisters pull a white handkerchief out of her sleeve and put it to her eyes. It was like a big flash of lightning because, except for the white stuff around their faces, the Sisters were always dressed in long black dresses and black veils.

Mom, Dad, and Buddy went up to the altar for Holy Communion. I sat quietly in the pew. I hadn't made my First Communion yet.

They came back and knelt down for a little while. Then Mom whispered, “Okay, boys, we have to go now or you'll be late for school.”

Because no one had had breakfast, we went into the drugstore across from the church. They had a soda fountain. “We don't have time to go all the way home,” Mom said. “So we'll have a quick breakfast here. It will be a treat.”