As the sun came out after a big rain storm, Water, Egg and Poppy-Seed Bagel
decided to go out for a roll down the hill.
The hill had a paved street with curbs and sidewalks on both sides. The
Bagel Boys always rolled down the sidewalk, to avoid the automobiles in the
street. They loved to roll down the hill, usually side by side. The sidewalk
was still wet, and water from the rain was still gushing down the street
next to the curbstones.
Usually they didn't go more than a half a block before slowly starting to
flip their way back up the hill and up the front steps of their house.
"Come on! Let's have a race today!" cried Poppy-Seed Bagel. "Last one to
reach the middle of the block has to wash the dishes!" he exclaimed .
"One-two-three, go!" Egg Bagel shouted, and they were off.
Poppy-Seed Bagel was the youngest of the three, and while he was very fast,
he was a little clumsy at times. Often, he rolled in a wobbly way and
sometimes he'd fall over on his side.
The other Bagel Boys thought that his problem was that he had too many poppy
seeds on him, which kept him from rolling smoothly like most of the others.
The three racers shouted for joy as they rolled themselves down the
sidewalk, side by side. Poppy-Seed Bagel began to take the lead. He rolled
faster and faster, and wobbled more and more.
As they neared the finish line at the middle of the block, Poppy-Seed Bagel
was well ahead of the others, and he looked as if he would surely win. But
suddenly, he flipped over on his side and fell over the curb, into the
street, and right into the rushing water from the recent rainstorm.
The other two looked on in horror as Poppy-Seed Bagel was washed down along
the curb by the torrent of water. There was nothing they could do.
Poppy-Seed Bagel's cries for help quickly became fainter and fainter as he
disappeared from the sight of the other two.
It was amazing that Poppy-Seed Bagel was not run over by a car as the water
pushed him down the hill and across the first busy street. But it was even
more amazing when he managed to bounce himself out of the water and up onto
the grass next to the curb about a block and a half away from his house at
the top of the hill.
He was scared. He had never gone so far away from his house all by himself,
and he wasn't really sure just where he was. He wondered, "How will I ever
dry off, and how will I ever get home?"
But now, night has fallen on the little house near the top of the hill, and
the time has come for you and the Bagel Boys to go to sleep.
Bagel Boys Main Page

Last revised: 28 October 2016. Conditions of Use.
Copyright © 2001-2016 by The Jack Horntip Collection.

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