frightening lightning(and other inky pinkies)

名称：frightening lightning(and other inky pinkies)
内容简介：
Dear Arizona,
　　I have my yearly checkup next week. I’m supposed to get a shot, and I’m so scared. Do you have any advice for staying calm, especially while I’m in the waiting room?
　 —Not Brave in New Brunswick

Dear Not Brave,
　 I know the super-scared feeling you’re talking about. If I had to make a Top Ten List of Least Favorite Feelings, scared would definitely be way up there! For some lucky and unknown reason, shots don’t scare me too much. But other things, such as humongous storms, terrify me! I was reminded of that feeling earlier this month when my family and I went to visit my grandparents in Colorado.

In my area of California, storms aren’t very common. But it seems to me that Colorado has the most gigantic thunderstorms in the universe!

My parents had gone to visit some friends for the weekend while my little sister and brother and I stayed with our grandparents. We’d spent the day hiking to the top of a mountain, and when we got back that night we were all “as worn-out as old shoes” (as my grandfather likes to say).

Indi and I lay on the pull-out couch, while Tex put a sheet over two living-room chairs and arranged his sleeping bag on the f loor underneath. When I told him his setup looked more uncomfortable than the bumpy mattress Indi and I were sleeping on, he said, “This is a tent. Camping isn’t supposed to be comfortable. It’s an adventure!”

“I want to sleep in a tent, too!” Indi said, hopping up to pull two chairs from the dining room.

“Could you please just get settled?” I yawned. “I’m exhausted!”

And right about then is when it happened. Outside the window, the whole night sky lit up like someone had turned on the world’s strongest f lashlight! And just after that, an incredibly loud, rumbling sound came crashing from the clouds: BOOOOOOOOOOOM! (Or something like that. It’s difficult to describe in words.) Tex, Indi, and I screamed at the same time, and my grandparents came rushing in to check on us.

“Everything’s OK,” said Poppy. “It’s just a big thunderstorm.”

“A big, big thunderstorm!” I said, shuddering.

There was another gigantic f lash of light followed by another enormous thunderclap. We kids huddled together, and Gran stretched her arms around us.

“Um, how long do these things usually last?” I asked.

“Oh, the worst of it will be over soon,” said Gran. “I’m too scared to sleep,” said Indi.

“How about we play a game or two of Ink Pink?” said Gran. “That’ll take our minds off the summer shower!”

“Good idea!” said Tex.

Ink Pink is a game my grandmother grew up playing, so my mom grew up playing it, and now we kids play it, too. It’s pretty easy once you know how it works. You think of two words that rhyme. If the words are one syllable each, like fat cat, that’s called an Ink Pink. If the words are two syllables each, like lazy daisy, that’s called an Inky Pinky.

“I have an Inky Pinky!” said Gran. “The clue is silly rabbit.”

“A goofy bunny!” guessed Poppy.

“No, Poppy,” said Tex. “The words have to rhyme.”

“I got it,” said Indi. “Funny bunny!”

“Correct!” said Gran.

“I have an Ink Pink,” I said. “The clue for the first word is a slithery creature with no legs, and the clue for the second word is a yummy dessert.”

“Snake cake!” said Poppy.

“Good job!” I told him.

“That gives me an idea.” Poppy smiled. “How about we all head to the kitchen and see if we have any snake cake to munch on.”

“I’m pretty sure we’re out of snake cake,” said Gran, laughing, “but I think we could scrounge up some milk and graham crackers.”

And that’s exactly what we did.

I guess what I’m trying to say, dear Not Brave, is that sometimes you can deal with a fear by distracting yourself until the scary part is over. The reason Ink Pink works well is that your brain gets so busy trying to figure out the clues that it runs out of room to worry.

Hey, I just thought of another Ink Pink (with an extra word in the middle)! The clue for the first word is good-bye, and the clue for the last word is right this second.

Ciao for now (get it?),

Arizona