Writing all these letters has helped me stay focused in school because I write about what is happening everyday and it helps me remember all the things I have to do. Yesterday, was Gretchen's birthday and if I hadn't written to Grandpa on Wednesday that I needed an idea for a gift for her, I may not have thought to ask him and he wouldn't have given me such a good idea. He said that I should buy her a kite so that we could have something to do on those windy summer days. I wrote back that I thought it was a great idea and I would go after school with Tom over to the hobby store on Grover St. I looked through the kites and found a make-your- own-kite kit that seemed good, but I didn't know if I would have time to finish it so I bought another one in a shape of a fish that looks like Nemo for Gretchen and bought the make-your-own for me. Earlier today, Gretchen and I went to the park in town and tried to fly her kite (mine isn't ready yet), but it wasn't windy enough to get the kite to stay in the air. We had a lot of fun trying though and we ran so much that afterwards we just layed in the grass and looked at the clouds and even fell asleep for a short time. Of course, we ate ice cream afterwards with money that Dad gave us. I think that the kite was Gretchen's favorite birthday gift and we are planning on going kite flying every Sunday after church with or without the wind.
In the hobby store, I met a man named Danny who was what Mom called "mildly retarded" or maybe had "Down Syndrome". "Down Syndrome" is "a congenital disorder arising from a chromosome defect, causing intellectual impairment and physical abnormalities including short stature and a broad facial profile." Danny worked at the hobby store and knew a lot about kites, trains, and other hobbies, but mostly enjoyed riding horses and cheerleading for the special olympics, which is a sporting event for people with handicaps. Danny liked the hat I was wearing and asked if any famous baseball players had signed it. I said "no", but I asked if he would sign my hat and he seemed happy to do so. "Danny #1" is what he signed on the inside of my baseball hat and there seemed to be a lot of joy that came from such a simple act. Danny told me how he liked to do word search puzzles on his free time when he isn't riding horses in competition. He also said that this summer he is going to Denmark to learn about how they ride horses there and to visit his relatives. Danny seemed happy no matter what he was doing or what he was talking about and he seemed to make every one else in the store happy also, except Tom who was mad because the comic book he wanted wasn't in. Danny and I gave each other our phone numbers and addresses and he promised to mail me a postcard from Denmark. I said that I would come to watch him ride horses in the next competition. Afterwards, I thought about Danny all day and how cheerful he was and how good he made you feel just talking with him.
At first, I wanted to make my kite into a blue falcon, but now I have decided that since Gretchen and I will fly our kites together that maybe mine should also look like a fish so that our kites are two fish in a big blue sky-pond.

Windy Summer Days

   K B O K G S Z T S J S D H Y D
   X R I O Z L S D A H U E O M T
   A T A G A R U H S I F B B O F
   E W G P S O P I C N I C B Y N
   Z J M G L K W Q F R Y O Y C F
   A O M C C K Y R V I B P P W L
   Y M U S X F X G R A I Z A Z Y
   M U O G K S D Z L K C D C K P
   A R N D P B O U K Q C T I B T
   E R X J E Y W J M F S G B H F
   R E X U A G H T X M I Z P J U
   C H S A D S H E P W N V S N A
   E B W Q B Y M K D U A R U U P
   C O R R M K Y U H T X I Z Y N
   I W M S X A F X I T E W A G E

BIGSKY
CLOUDS
FISH
HOBBY
ICECREAM
KITE
PARK
PICNIC


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The painting is by James C. Christensen