SLEET

Margaret was on the south porch. She had just gotten home from school.

“Jenny!” she called out gaily. “Come on out. It’s fun”

“What is?” Jenny asked from the kitchen.

“The sleet. I slid almost all the way home. Look.”

Margaret went out to the driveway. She ran and then slid for several feet on the shiny ground.

“Can I go out , Mother? Please let me.”

Jenny had a little cold and Mother had been keeping her inside.

“Well, you’ll have to bundle up good and be careful not to fall down.”

Jenny put on her warmest winter wraps. She rushed out eagerly to play. The minute her feet hit the icy ground, they slipped out from under her. She jumped up quickly so no one would see her. It hadn’t hurt much because of the layers of heavy clothing.

“Let’s see who can slid###je the farthest,” said Margaret.

They broke off frozen brittle weed stalks to mark the places where they started and stopped sliding. Margaret, of course, was the best slider, but once in a while Jenny would win.

When they faced the wind, the sleet hurt their faces. The cold made their hands and feet numb,. but they were having so much fun that they were willing to take the sweet with the bitter. One whole side of the house was covered with a smooth hard sheet of ice. Jenny kicked it with the toe of her overshoes, but she couldn’t even make one crack. There were beautiful crystal beads on the clothes line, the fences and the trees. It was a fairyland.

“It’s just magic!” Jenny exclaimed.

“It's just frozen rain,” said Margaret, always ready to disillusion her naive little sister.

“I don’t care. I like it. I hope it sleets again tomorrow.”