Читать книгу The Pole Star Family - Enid blyton - Страница 4

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Everyone thought that Mike, Belinda and Ann were very lucky children.

“Fancy having a caravan to live in each week-end!” said Kenneth, one of their school friends.

“Two,” said Mike. “Painted red and yellow. One for Mummy and Daddy and one for us three. It’s fun.”

“And there are taps in each caravan that really turn on, and bunks for us to sleep in,” said Belinda. “When the night is warm we have our door open so that we can see right out in the field. It’s lovely in buttercup time. The buttercups grow right up to the caravan steps!”

“It does sound lovely,” said Kenneth. “And didn’t you live in a houseboat on the river once?”

“We lived in the Saucy Jane on a canal,” said Ann. “We had a glorious time. Oh, I do wish we could go in a boat again!”

“Yes, but I’d like to go in a boat that travels about,” said Mike. “Our houseboat stayed still. Wouldn’t I like to go in a steamer!”

“What, far away to foreign lands?” said Kenneth. “You don’t mean all by yourself, do you?”

“Oh, no—with our whole family,” said Mike. “We do everything together. It wouldn’t be fun, somehow, if we couldn’t enjoy things with one another.”

“I think you’re a lucky family,” said Kenneth, and all the others agreed. “Lovely things are always happening to you.”

But oh dear—horrid ones happened too. The very next day, which was Saturday, Mummy had a telegram that said Granny was very ill. She called to Daddy.

“Oh, Daddy—look at this. I must go at once. Can you see to the children this week-end?”

“Yes, of course,” said Daddy, “and Belinda is very sensible now. We can trust her to do the shopping and a bit of cooking. Can’t we, Belinda?”

“Oh yes,” said Belinda, “but Mummy—poor old Granny! Do take her some flowers from us all, won’t you?”

Mummy went off in a hurry, looking worried. The caravan family set to work to tidy up the caravans, and then Belinda went off to do the shopping.

She did hope that Granny wasn’t very ill. Granny was a darling. She was kind and generous and liked making jokes. She had been going to come and stay with them in the caravans, when Daddy went away for a week, at the end of summer term. Now perhaps she wouldn’t.

When the end of term came Granny was still ill. And then, in August, something else happened! Mike began to cough badly, and then he suddenly made a very queer whooping noise.

“Oh dear!” said Mummy. “That sounds like whooping-cough to me. What a good thing it is the summer holidays, and you won’t miss any school. Daddy, as Granny is now in a nursing-home, I think I’d better take him to her house, and hope that Belinda and Ann won’t get it. They can stay here in the caravans with you.”

Belinda and Ann were very sad. Poor Mike. All alone at Granny’s in the summer holidays. And even Granny wasn’t there!

But in a week’s time both Belinda and Ann had whooping-cough too, so Mike was brought back to the caravan, and they were once more all together. Mike had it badly and so had Ann, but Belinda whooped only once or twice.

“What a summer holiday,” groaned poor Mummy. “Granny ill all the time—though she’s really getting on now, thank goodness—and now the children down with whooping-cough!”

“We are certainly not a very lucky family at the moment,” said Mike, gloomily, and coughed.

The holidays went by. The summer was not a very good one, and Mummy was quite in despair, because, she said, the children needed a lot of sunshine, and were getting hardly any. They nearly left the caravans and went to stay at Granny’s.

Soon the autumn term came near. Mummy looked at her three pale-faced children and felt sad. “They need a good holiday with plenty of sunshine,” she told Granny, when next she went to see her. “I don’t like sending them back to school looking so pale.”

Granny took her hand. “Now you listen to me, my dear,” she said. “I’ve got a great idea. You know that the doctor says I must go away for a holiday in a ship somewhere—on a cruise. Well, I don’t want to go alone. I want you all to come with me. It will do the children such a lot of good—and you too!”

Mummy looked at Granny in astonishment. “A cruise! Oh, Mother! What an idea—why, we couldn’t possibly do such ...”

“Yes, you could. I shall pay for you all. It would please me so much—and think how the children would love to go off in a great steamer, and see all kinds of different countries!”

“Yes, they would. Oh, they’d love it!” said Mummy, beginning to feel most excited. “I must go back to the caravans and see what their father says. Dear me, what will the children say when they hear!”

She kissed Granny good-bye and hurried off, her eyes shining. What a holiday that would be! How Mike would love it—and as for Belinda and Ann, they would go quite mad with joy. If only, only, only it could really happen!