Grandpa's Stuff, by Rangerette #1, age 4

Grandpa carries all sorts of things. He lets me see them but I have to say what each one is for. He wears a funny floppy hat called a bush hat. He can roll it up and put it in his pocket. In his hoodies pockets he carries a little black flashlight called a mag-light. It has a long string on it so he can wear it around his neck at night. He says he can light a campfire with it, but I haven't seen him do it. In the other pocket of his hoodie he has a little peice of metal he calls mag-nes-eum. It has a piece in it he can make sparks on. He says it lights fires, too. And more string. He carries lots of string, but he calls it cordage. You can't have too much cordage, he says. Around his neck on a string under his shirt he wears a compass for a necklace. He lets me play with it. In his pants pocket he has a swiss army knife. It does all kinds of things, even pulls out slivers. He's always saying a swiss army knife can fix anything but a broken heart. Of course he has his billfold, besides money he has pictures of grandma and me and his other grand daughters. He calls us his Rangerettes and gives us numbers by how old we are. I'm oldest, so I'm Rangerette #1. Grandpa is silly.

He takes long walks with Bay-Toe-Ven. They come back all wet and muddy. Grandpa and Grandma are here taking care of little sister and me while Mommy is in the hospital having our little brother. He and Daddy argue about the Bible a lot. They call it theology. I can tell when Daddy is right and Grandpa is wrong because Grandpa gets red in the face. Grandma makes us good food but I'll be glad when Mommy comes home.