第3部分 (第8/8页)

nt　page　of　the　Mayfield　Times　for　being　an　eighth…

grade　Einstein；　like　you　might　suspect。　No；　my

friend；　she　got　front…page　coverage　because　she　refused　to　climb　out　of　a　sycamore　tree。

Not　that　I　could　tell　a　sycamore　from　a　maple　or　a　birch　for　that　matter；　but　Juli；　of　course；

knew　what　kind　of　tree　it　was　and　passed　that

knowledge　along　to　every　creature　in　her　wake。

So　this　tree；　this　sycamore　tree；　was　up　the　hill　on　a　vacant　lot　on　Collier　Street；　and　it　was

massive。　Massive　and　ugly。　It　was　twisted　and　gnarled

and　bent；　and　I　kept　expecting　the　thing　to　blow　over　in　the　wind。

One　day　last　year　I'd　finally　had　enough　of　her　yakking　about　that　stupid　tree。　I　came　right　out

and　told　her　that　it　was　not　a　magnificent　sycamore；

it　was；　in　reality；　the　ugliest　tree　known　to　man。　And　you　know　what　she　said？　She　said　I　was

visually　challenged。　Visually　challenged！　This　from　the

girl　who　lives　in　a　house　that's　the　scourge　of　the　neighborhood。　They've　got　bushes　growing

over　windows；　weeds　sticking　out　all　over　the　place；

and　a　barnyard's　wort