THE WILD AND WACKY RHYMING STORIES OF

MISS HENRIETTA HUMPLEDOWNING

by Tom Smith

2

His father would yell and his mother would cry

But veggies were something that Frank wouldn't try.

Even when he wasn't allowed from the table

Until he ate just a small bite of a vegetable,

Frankie sat at that table refusing all night

And woke up at dawn, never taking a bite.

3/FRANKIE'S DAD

Don't you know what will happen,

2

Said his dad all upset,

3/FRANKIE'S DAD

If you don't eat your vegetables?

4/FRANKIE

No, what?

3/FRANKIE'S DAD

I forget.

But it's something quite awful, I know that for sure!

And eating your vegetables they say is the cure.

4/FRANKIE

Whatever!

2

Said Frankie, whose dad became scorned.

3/FRANKIE'S DAD

Fine then,

2

Said dad,

3/FRANKIE'S DAD

Don't say you weren't warned!

2

His dad stormed away kind of mad and despairy

But Frankie thought,

4/FRANKIE

Dad is just trying to scare me!

2

Later that night Frankie leapt into bed

The thoughts from his father still filling his head.

4/FRANKIE

Nonsense,

2

Groaned Frankie,

4/FRANKIE

Nothing will happen to me!

I'll still be the same, just you wait, Dad, you'll see.

2

Frankie closed up his eyes, and snuggled real tight

And struggled to juggle his dreams late that night.

(FRANKIE has crazy nightmares about vegetables.)

Strange visions of veggies had entered his dreams

And Frankie awoke with a series of screams.

4/FRANKIE

How strange and upsetting my night was last night!

But look, Dad was wrong, cause everything's right!

(HE gets up. There is a small hump on his tailbone.)

I'd better get dressed or I'll be late for the bus.

I can't believe Dad had made all that fuss

Over simply not eating a plateful of beans—

Hey, wait, just a minute, something's wrong with my jeans!

They don't seem to fit me; I can't pull them higher!

But how can that be? It's the very same attire

I wore just last night before heading to bed…

2

With that Frankie's heart began filling with dread.

In two seconds flat, his hands reached around

And Frankie screamed out when he found what he found.

4/FRANKIE

My back! There's a strange kind of rise like a lump!

But how did I ever develop this hump?

Maybe I fell out of bed in my sleep?

2

Frankie said to himself, trying hard not to weep.

4/FRANKIE

That's probably it, and I guess it's just swelling…

I'm sure it'll stop; I should stop all this yelling.

I'll just wear my sweats till the lump goes away,

2

And with that off went Frankie to school for the day.

At school Frankie felt like things just weren't right,

Like lunch came and went without him taking a bite.

The very same night, Frankie sat down to dinner

Where his mother had noticed he looked a lot thinner.