Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12 The first big blizzard hit the very next week, a howling storm that came in the night and lasted for three days. The weather cleared up until early November, and then it snowed on and off for most of the next two months. A Christmas Day ice storm left icicles hanging off the soddy roof, and all the way to the ground. Franny licked one and got her tongue stuck. Ma

had to melt some of the icicle with warm water so poor Franny's tongue wouldn't tear in half. But it turned out that winter was just getting started. On January 5, John woke up shivering. The inside of the soddy walls shimmered with white frost. His teeth chattered so hard he was afraid they'd shatter. Pa checked the thermometer outside their front door. "Minus twenty," he announced with a brrrrrrrr. Ma fed more coal into the stove, but it didn't do much good. When it got this cold outside, even the thick dirt walls of the soddy couldn't keep the warm air from seeping out. Of course it was too cold for school. Nobody could go out in this weather. John wished he could stay in bed, wrapped tight in his quilt. But Shadow and Princess needed breakfast. He bundled up in his heavy woolen coat and scarf and mittens and stepped outside.

The cold seemed to reach into his lungs and freeze his breath. His eyes watered and the tears froze to his cheeks. He rushed into the barn and warmed himself up by huddling next to Shadow. He tried to milk Princess, but only a few squirts came out. And the milk froze before it even hit the bucket. As he came out of the barn, he saw Pa standing in front of one of their haystacks. It looked like someone — or something — had chewed right through its center. "What happened?" John asked. "Some animal must have slept there last night," Pa said. John noticed little paw prints leading to and from the stack. "Looks like it was a fox," Pa said. "He hid in a haystack?" John asked. "Sure," Pa said. "The walls are good and thick, keeps the cold out."

John helped Pa fix the haystack. By the time he came in for breakfast, his face was completely numb. Icicles hung from his eyelashes. It took two mugs of Ma's tea to warm him up again. For a solid week, they couldn't leave the soddy except to feed the animals and to get water. They couldn't even use the outhouse. Ma put up a curtain in the corner, and they used a bucket. As the days dragged by, John started to feel like a pickle trapped in a jar — a cold and very smelly jar. But on the morning of January 12, Franny shook John awake. "It's summer!" she announced. "Not quite," Pa laughed. "But it warmed up. It's almost thirty degrees!" And after the bone-cracking cold of the last week, it did feel practically like summer. John had

only one thought: They would be able to go to school. John rushed through his chores and gobbled up his porridge, and he and Franny flew out the door. Ma called after them from the doorway. "Wait! Your mittens and scarves!" "Don't need them, Ma!" John hollered back. "It's summer, Ma, remember?" Franny laughed. As she and John walked, Franny looked up at the sky. "Look," she said. "It looks like a fairy tale." The sky did look different, pale blue and streaked with gold. John had never seen anything like it.