Raphie Learns a Big Word

Ralphie!" called his mother. "I need you to pick up your toys.!"
"I will in a minute , Mom" said Ralphie as he raced out to play  He soon forget what his mother had asked him to do and was so involved playing with his friends that he didn't hear his mother calling him for dinner 

When Raphie didn't come in for dinner, his mother decided to teach him a lesson and let him play. Later, Ralphie got very hungry and went into his house to eat, but dinner was over and only his older brother was there to baby sit. He couldn't cook. The only thing that Ralphie knew how to make was a peanut butter sandwich. He made the sandwich and went outside and sat down by a large rock to eat it.  How lonely he felt!  As he leaned back against the rock, his eyes became heavy.


Soon he heard strange voices saying, "Wait-a- minute, pretty soon and I'm going to".  "Let's shake him! cried one. "No, let us take him to  the king," said another.  Then they wound long webs about him, and lifting him up from the ground, they flew away with him.  For miles and miles they traveled through the air, until at last they stopped at the entrance to a cave.  They went inside, and Ralphie heard many voices buzzing about him. 

"Where am I" he asked timidly,  "You are safe at home," said wait-a-minute"

"This is not my home," said Ralphie, beginning to cry with fright.  "Yes it is it," said many voices; "There are more fellows like you here"

Ralphie saw rows of boys and girls with sad faces, repeating over and over, "I'm going to!"  "Pretty soon!" "In-a -minute!" In a corner by themselves were unhappy fellows who were called "Too late."


"Oh, please let me out!  I want my mother," wailed Raphie.  "No you don't," said wait-a-minute. "You don't care much about her. Anyway, this is your home--The Kingdom Of PROCRASTINATION"  Raphie didn't even know what procrastination meant. It was too big a word and besides what kind of a Kingdom was that? 

The king came into the room  and looked at Ralphie from head to foot, and placed him at the end of a row of children who were saying just as fast as they could, "going-to, going to, going to! " "You may say "Going to" only a thousand times today.," said the King "tomorrow you must say it a million times."

"Raphie, Ralphie,' called a familiar voice, "Where is my boy? You still need to pick up your toys."  Ralphie opened his eyes and looked about him.  It was his mother's cheery voice, and how glad he was to hear it again!  This time he didn't say "I am going to" but jumped up and ran into the house so fast that his mother looked up in surprise.  All his toys were put back into the toy box faster than ever, and he was in his pajamas, ready for bed before his mother even asked him.  From that time on, Raphie quickly responded to his mothers  requests, because he never wanted  to be haunted by the voices of PROCRASTINATION ever again.