Sunshine by Marion Dane Bauer

Author:Marion Dane Bauer [Bauer, Marion Dane]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781536218213
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Published: 2021-05-15T00:00:00+00:00

Ben sits at the edge of the lake just beyond the cabin and the outhouse for a long time, listening to the steady lapping of the waves against the shore.

What was his mother talking about in there anyway? So what if their neighbor had a . . . what was it called? A cavalier, a king . . . something. Who cares? Sunshine is his. And nobody in the whole world can take her away. Not by telling him he’s too old. Not by telling him there was another dog like her, either.

Sunshine has followed him out and sits next to the overturned canoe again, gazing across the lake. That’s all she seems to think about these days, going out in the canoe.

Or sniffing baby bears.

Ben looks out across the water, too. It does look nice out there. Almost nice enough to want to be paddling again.

He holds that idea close for a moment. There are, after all, lots of ways to explore.

He walks slowly to the canoe, squats and peers underneath. Is it possible? Yes. The paddles are there. The life jackets, too.

He straightens, the idea rising within him like the morning sun. He knows how to paddle a canoe, doesn’t he? And if he explores by canoe, he won’t risk getting lost in a maze of trees. The whole time he’s out there, he’ll be able to look back to see where he came from, look ahead to see where he’s going.

And wouldn’t a little outing in the canoe be better than sitting here for the whole long afternoon the way he did yesterday?

Besides, his mother would be pleased to know he’s brave enough to paddle a canoe all by himself. Maybe she’d even forget about his running away from the bears. Maybe she’d forget about the way he cried “wolf” about the loons, too.

Ben flips the canoe over, then stands back to study it. Narrow and long. Real long. Can he steer it the way his mother did? Without any help?

He doesn’t have to call Sunshine to join him. The minute he turned the canoe upright, she installed herself in the bow. “You’re right,” he says, nodding to her. “Let’s go.”

He puts on his life jacket, noticing as he zips it up how well it fits. His mother must have bought a life jacket just for him. He hadn’t thought about that before, that she wouldn’t need a child-sized life jacket except for him.

He picks up a paddle and drops it into the bottom. He considers taking the second one, too. Just in case Sunshine wants to help. He smiles at the thought, but he leaves the second paddle on the ground.

It will mark the exact spot where he will return the canoe.

He tries lifting the canoe to carry it the way his mother would, but without her on the other side he can’t get it even an inch off the ground. So he shoves instead.

When he gets to the water, he wades in, pushing the canoe before him.

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