quickly left her lunch box and car coat in the cloakroom before she sat down at her desk

with one foot folded under her. She spread

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her pleated skirt to hide her dirty sock.

Susan noticed. “What happened to your

other shoe?” she asked.

“I lost it, and don’t you tell!” If Susan

told, Ramona would have a good excuse to

pull Susan’s boing-boing curls.

“I won’t,” promised Susan, pleased to share

a secret,“but how are you going to keep Mrs.

Griggs from finding out?”

Ramona cast a desperate look at Susan.“I

don’t know,” she confessed.

“Class,” said Mrs. Griggs in a calm voice.

This was her way of saying, All right, everyone quiet down and come to order because

we have work to do, and we won’t accom-

plish anything if we waste time talking to one another. Ramona tried to warm her cold foot

by rubbing it through her pleated skirt.

Mrs. Griggs looked around her classroom.

“Who has not had a turn at leading the flag

salute?” she asked.

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Ramona stared at her desk while trying to shrink so small Mrs. Griggs could not see her.

“Ramona, you have not had a turn,” said

Mrs. Griggs with a smile.“You may come to

the front of the room.”

Ramona and Susan exchanged a look.

Ramona’s said, Now what am I going to do?

Susan’s said, I feel sorry for you.

“Ramona, we’re waiting,” said Mrs.

Griggs.

There was no escape. Ramona slid from

her seat and walked to the front of the room where she faced the flag and stood on one

foot like a stork to hide her shoeless foot

behind her pleated skirt. “I pledge allegiance,”

she began, swaying.

“I pledge allegiance,” said the class.

Mrs. Griggs interrupted. “Both feet on

the floor, Ramona.”

Ramona felt a surge of defiance. Mrs.

Griggs wanted two feet on the floor, so she

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put two feet on the floor. “—to the flag,”

she continued with such determination that

Mrs. Griggs did not have another chance to

interrupt.When Ramona finished, she took

her seat. So there, Mrs. Griggs, was her

spunky thought.What if I am wearing only

one shoe?

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“Ramona, what happened to your other shoe?” asked Mrs. Griggs.

“I lost it,” answered Ramona.

“Tell me about it,” said Mrs. Griggs.

Ramona did not want to tell.“I was chased

by a . . .” She wanted to say gorilla, but after a moment’s hesitation she said,“. . . dog, and I had to throw my shoe at him, and he ran

off with it.” She expected the class to laugh, but instead they listened in silent sympathy.

They did not understand about a hole in

a house, but they understood about big

dogs.They too had faced big dogs and been

frightened. Ramona felt better.

“Why, that’s too bad,” said Mrs. Griggs,

which surprised Ramona. Somehow she

had not expected her teacher to understand.