This session of "Take My Word For It!" at Marshall Road was all about treasures. What makes a treasure a treasure? Where and how do we find treasures? Can a person be a treasure? From long lost twins to treasures found in the backs of taxi cabs, the treasures imagined by the writers at Marshall Road were inventive, exciting, and written with great care.
Screaming Donut
Hi, I’m Fabi. I’m ten years old. Guess what happened to me. I lost a sceaming donut in a taxi! I mean, even I know that screaming donuts are so creepy, but I really liked that guy… or girl donut so I didn’t care. It was the screaming donut’s birthday! I guess I could tell you the story…
It was my screaming donut’s birthday, so I was going to take her on her first taxi ride. Cool, right! Well, not cool. I was hungry and I decided to go get some coffee and I left her in the cab! Poor screaming donut. I looked for her for 15 minutes. So long!
Then a week later, I was really hungry and going to get some coffee when I saw the taxi driver on the street yelling like some crazy guy. He was telling the world that he saw a screaming donut. That was it! Breathlessly, I asked him if he knew where she was. He said she ran away.
I was getting really hungry so I was going to have some pizza of sorrow. Then, I saw her-my screaming donut on the street! We ran toward each other in slow motion. I hugged her and hugged her so much that… I ate her. Ooops, my bad!
-FABI
(From: I left a treasure in a taxi cab!)
The Thief’s Cane
Once there was a thief who lost his cane, which he used to help him when he was on a trip to steal stuff. He mostly used it to make his trips more successful. He could grab things with it and store things in his cane which was much bigger than it looked. But one day, he lost his cane and after that his thieving trips weren’t so successful.
A few weeks later, he was outside walking to the store and he saw a paper hung up on a tree. He got curious, so he read the paper and saw that someone had lost an incredible thing. He really really wanted that thing. It was a treasure. So that night, the thief went to the museum where all the lost items are to see where that lost item was. He tip-toed right in and began his search.
UP AND DOWN, LEFT AND RIGHT, it seemed like it wasn’t there. Finally, he recognized something familiar. He was happy he found it and proud of himself. It was his lost cane!
But then he heard someone coming so he hid.
He was very frightened of being caught. It was a police officer, who had heard him make noise. The office didn’t see anyone so he went away. The thief was so happy that he forgot to get the first item that he liked. From his fright, he never stole again.
-ZAINAB
(From: The Museum of Found Objects)
Funion Cun and His Diamond
“Have a fit body, run run run,”
Said good old Funion Cun.
Funion Cun was a very rich man,
For he had a diamond, one special diamond,
Shaped like a can.
He thought with it, laughed with it, played with it, fought with it, but there is one thing Funion Cun never dared to do.
And that was give his diamond to the man with only one shoe
Or give it to the lady who’s making a zoo,
Never to the man who paints big doors.
Said Funion Cun, “I loved my diamond ever so much,
I prepared to give her a ring.
But when I asked her to marry me,
She said nothing.”
-- REAGAN
(From: The Story of a Valuable Object)
Missing Shoes in NYC
I was running to catch a cab in New York. That busy place (ugh). It’s always sooo hard to catch a cab, but I did it! When I stepped into the cab, I gave the cabbie my name, Veronica Joni. I’m a famous actress from the one and only smash hit Lucky Gold.
As the cabbie drove away, I applied my cherry red lipstick and my so thick mascara. A girl does her makeup, people, duh! Suddenly, the cab came to a complete halt. It was at my destination, downtown New York. That’s where all the starz go. As I left, I made sure I had everything: purse, nail polish… but not my extra pair of expensive shoes. My shoes! Oh my goodness. How could I forget those shoes? They cost $500, and that was the price on sale! Besides, Veronica Joni, does not forget stuff (actually, I do, but that’s not the point!).
Before I thought it through, I grabbed my cell and called 911! It takes forever for the police to pick up the phone, even when someone calls 911. Finally they picked up.
“Hello, how may I help you?” the man’s voice came through the other line.
“Yes hi, I need to report that my designer shoes have gone missing,” I said.
“Uh… I’m sorry, ma’am. We can’t help you,” the policeman said, giving me the bad news.
“But I’m Veronica Joni, you have to respect--hello?” Darn those police officers, hanging up during the worst emergency ever! And to think they say they’re the best in New York.
Get yourself together, Veronica, I told myself over and over. I’ll get those shoes. But three days later all I could think was, I won’t get those shoes. The cabbie hadn’t called me back in three dumb days, agh! I did give him my number. People can take precautions, right? Thank goodness the the taxi programs have daily route maps. I went to the nearest taxi booth and grabbed a map. I looked at the map and noticed that the next stop was downtown New York, where I was! The cab would be here any minute.
Two hours later, the cab was there. I tried to look my best, but my hair was frizzy because I was very impatient.
“Sir, remember me, Veronica Jon--”
“No.” the cabbie rudely interrupted.
“”Okay, um, I think I left my designer shoes in your cab.” I waited for a response.
“Oh, you mean these beauties?” The cabbie handed me back my shoes… but not all in one piece.
“Ahhh!” I cried, wiping tears off my face. “What happened to my shoes?” I whined.
“Funny story, they fell into the mud and then got ripped and chewed on,” the cabbie explained.
“Who chewed on them? And by the way, that story was not funny!”
“Me,” the cabbie admitted. “Sorry, I’m weird like that. Eating shoes is my thing. My mom made me stop eating glue sticks, and what else was I supposed to eat, French fries?”
It’s okay, Veronica. It’s okay, I told myself. I took a deep breath and told the cabbie that I didn’t need those shoes back. What I didn’t tell him was that he was about to get sued!
-- KENNEDY
(From: I Left a Treasure in a Taxi Cab!)
Found Poem
Fun
Music
like smoothies…
Smoothies where you rock out.
Energized, Happy, Purple, Orange
Pink-cloud-tropical-cool-springy smoothies.
-- CAMILLA
(From: Found Poetry)
This fall the 3rd-5th grade students at Sunset Elementary focused their creativity on food writing. Using all of their senses to write similes and metaphors, to personify food, making them characters in exploring their worlds and going on adventures; they've written odes to the food they like best, and even recipes of themselves.
