We drop our guns and leave our hole-pocked potatoes to fester where they fall A month or two later Mom discovers one and shakes it at us I sure wish I wasn’t so frightened of a withered potato 4
Chapter Two Rudy is not my brother’s full name I’m not allowed to say his full name because it upsets him But sometimes late at night I crawl deep under my covers and say it very softly Just to hear it out loud You can probably figure out what it is Think what Rudy might be short for Want a clue Red-nosed reindeer Got it But why would my mother pick a name that no one is allowed to say Mom says when Rudy was born he came out howling like a wolf Guess what R___ means Brave wolf So even though a magical Christmas reindeer 5
is the first thing people think of when they hear that name Mom felt it was meant to be Rudy A brave wolf More like a scaredy-cat Rudy gets stomachaches when it’s time to go to school If we’re heading to a party he hides under his blankets When a waiter asks for his order he goes mute When Rudy gets anxious Mom reminds him to take long deep breaths In through the nose out through the mouth Most of the time though Rudy is lots of fun He and I love to perch in high places We play marbles up on closet shelves eat our snacks squatting on the mantelpiece or even on top of the fridge I once saw Rudy sit on a door while it was open and read up there I don’t know how he did it I would try but it looks very uncomfortable Mom thinks our desire to be up high comes from our great-grandmother who was a trapeze artist That’s the most dangerous occupation in the world Mom always says The second most dangerous job is West Coast logger 6
