The Last Sardine

A table of eight gathered in the old mansion's front lobby. They had been playing cards for quite some time, but were quite done with that. At that moment, mother suggested a game of sardines.

"Sardines? What is that?" asked Lizzy.

"I know it what it is," said Molly, "It's hide-and-go-seek in reverse."

"Whatever do you mean?"

"Instead of everyone but one person hiding, only one person hides. That person is the sardine. The rest of us are ducks. The ducks count to 100, then they go hunting for the sardine. After we find you, we hide, too. The last person to find the group becomes the sardine."

"All ye All ye Outs in Free"

"Olly Olly Oxen Free"

Channelling

Each and every Sunday morning, Elizabeth's father would rise just before dawn. Before he read the morning edition, before he drank his glass of grape juice, and even before he put on a ful set of clothing, he changed into his swim trunks and flip-flops and got into his car.

He drove his car to the shore and parked it in an empty parking lot behind Fred's Public House No. 1. He stretched for a little while. Afterwards, he waded into the surf and swam into the English Channel.

He had followed this routine precisely every Sunday for as long as he lived in St. Ives.

Fish and Chips and Chips

Mummers, Inc.

Quid for a Cornish Hen

"Grannie!" called Elizabeth. There was no answer. "Grandma Margaret!" "In here, dearie," called Grandma Margaret. She was in the kitchen with three other women

Glossary

Elizabeth Atkinson - growing up in Truro. Cornwall, England. Elizabeth is the middle child in a family of five children. 3 girls, 2 boys. (Elizabeth has two brothers and two sisters.) They live in an extended cottage, near the confluence of the three rivers of Truro.

Grandma Margaret Drury
Father Matthew Atkinson
Mother Chelsea Atkinson