This children’s story is meant for a four- to eight-year-old reader. It is the only children’s story I’ve written and likely will ever write. It is based on a true and personal family story that appeared in the Simcoe Reformer in the early sixties. Victor will always be the brave hero in our family history. 

A Weird and Scary Day, by Valerie Hickey

Every day at exactly noon, Victor sits on the floor in the cubby corner with his sad dad who reads in his armchair while his mom and sisters go to the shops. 

This morning until exactly noon Victor is going tobogganing with Frankie and Dana and Dennis at the park by the river that runs through the town. 

That’s the plan. But a weird and scary day is ahead. 

Dana and Dennis meet Victor and Frankie at the park—that’s normal. They trudge up the hill, and fly down it, up and down, again and again—normal. Frankie rolls off the toboggan and Dana rolls off behind him and Dennis and Victor chase snowflakes with their tongues. That’s all normal too. 

After a while, Victor says it’s time to go home because he must sit with his dad at noon. The four set off walking along the side of the icy river up to the road. Frankie walks close to the edge. 

“You better not walk so close to the edge,” says Victor. Victor is six. Frankie is only five.

But Frankie walks close to the edge. 

Suddenly, Frankie slips and tumbles onto the ice, and then shuuushhh, he falls through the ice into the freezing cold river! 

This is when the day turns into the weirdest scariest day ever.

Dennis runs away. Dana starts to run after him and then stops, watching Victor, then Frankie. 

Victor can’t find his voice in his chest. The world is moving in sloooooow moooooootion. 

His eyes see a long branch under a big tree. His legs run over. His hands pick up the branch and his legs run back. His arms shove the branch across the ice into the river just as Frankie comes up to the surface. 

Victor’s cheeks fill up with his voice and his words burst out of his chest: “HOLD ONTO THE BRANCH FRANKIE!”

Frankie’s hands grab the branch. Victor pulls hard to bring Frankie to the shore, but Frankie keeps hitting the ice. 

“I’m too young to die!” Frankie cries. 

Victor finds his voice again. “Dana, come back! Help me pull Frankie out!” he shouts.

Dana runs to Victor. The two of them pull and they pull and they pull, but they just can’t pull Frankie out of the icy water.

“Hold on to the branch! I’ll go get a grown-up!” Victor cries. 

His legs run fast as a flash, across the park, past the gazebo, past the picnic table, through the big trees toward the houses. At the very first house, Victor bang-bang-bangs on the door. Mr. Dedrick is wearing a brown housecoat over his pyjamas. He looks down at Victor.

“FRANKIE IS IN THE WATER!” Victor shouts, pointing. 

Victor and Mr. Dedrick run back across the park to the river.

Mr. Dedrick jumps down the bank. One of his slippers falls off. He leans over the ice and grabs Frankie’s hand. Then he lifts him out of the icy water into his arms. 

“Follow me!” he calls to Victor and Dana. Mr Dedrick leaves his slipper in the snow. 

Victor has goosebumps, but things feel a bit more normal now. 

Mrs. Dedrick and a police man are waiting at the door. Everyone rushes into the house.   

“Lay him on the chesterfield,” says Mrs. Dedrick. She and the constable take off Frankie’s wet clothes and cover him with an electric blanket. 

Once Frankie is warm, the constable asks, “What’s your name, son?” 

Frankie says, “I’m Frank Madden. My dad’s name is Frank Madden too.” 

Frankie always tells everybody he has the same name as his dad.  

Constable Wheaton calls Frankie’s parents. Then he takes Victor and Dana into the kitchen where Mr. Dedrick serves them hot chocolate. Victor and Dana tell Constable Wheaton what happened. Mrs. Dedrick stays with Frankie. 

All of a sudden, Victor gets up, scraping his chair. He’s just remembered his dad sitting in his chair, waiting for him at noon today. 

“I gotta go home!” 

Victor’s sister peeks out the front window when the constable’s car pulls up. Victor’s mom opens the door. Victor’s dad is in his chair. Victor’s mom and sisters are speaking all at once. 

Coming home with a policeman is not what you’d call normal. 

The constable says, “Well Mr. and Mrs. Yegorov, your son is a brave boy. He saved Frankie from the icy river today. Victor acted quickly, grabbing the stick and running to get Mr. Dedrick.” 

Victor stands in his cubby corner. His mom brings him a tea and gives him a hug and kiss. She whispers in his ear, “Such a good boy.” Victor likes it but it IS normal mom stuff. 

Frankie’s dad arrives. He takes off his hat when he enters and holds it against his chest. He puts his hand on Victor’s shoulder and then he shakes Victor’s hand. “Victor, you were very brave today. Thank you, Victor,” he says and wipes his eye.

He walks over to Victor’s dad sitting in the armchair and shakes his hand too. He shakes his mom’s hand, his sisters’ hands and Constable Wheaton’s hand. 

He turns to Victor’s dad and mom and sisters and says, “You must be very proud.” 

Then, two people from the local newspaper arrive. Everyone is chatty and cheerful; tea cups are clinking and clattering. The small living room has never had so many happy grown-ups in it. 

After everyone leaves, Victor’s dad pulls Victor onto his lap, and gives him a hug. “You make me very proud, son.” 

Frankie is at home and probably laughing as usual. Frankie’s mom and dad are happy. Victor’s dad is smiling and not sad. The weirdest and scariest day ever turned out great. 

(But Victor hopes tomorrow will be just a bit more normal.)