John & Julia's Family Days

Julia and the Purim Disguise

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Julia draws Nana’s red glasses, silver curls and smile on the yellow food-gift bag.
Julia had made a Purim gift for Nana: triangle cookies and a sealed cup of applesauce in a bright paper bag. She drew Nana on the label. Round red glasses. Curly silver hair. A great big smile. “Hoo-hoo-HUP!” laughed Nana. “You've drawn all my teeth!”
Julia wears her lion mane; John raises his real arms through a silver cardboard robot box.
Then Nana went home to put on her party costume. Julia put on her lion mane. John put on his robot box. “ROAR!” said Julia. “BEEP,” said John.
Close view: John’s cream shirt cuff catches on the lower cardboard lip of an armhole.
His arms went up. They would not go down.
Mom’s hand touches the armhole rim while John’s two arms remain visible.
Mom loosened the armholes.
John waves comfortably through the roomy armhole, with his other arm down. The yellow gift waits on the bench.
“Beep,” he said, much more comfortably.
A sunny party with a trumpet-carrying penguin, a tiny queen in enormous boots, and many costumes. John’s robot box has a plain silver back.
At the Purim party, sunlight filled a room full of costumes. A penguin carried a trumpet. A tiny queen wore enormous boots. And somewhere in the room was Nana. Julia held up her bag. “We have a delivery.”
Mr. Moss smiles inside a silver helmet with two red headlights mounted above his face.
She spotted two round red circles above a silver suit. “Nana?” The silver helmet tipped back. Mr. Moss smiled out. “Spaceship headlights,” he said. “Lovely headlights,” said Julia. “Wrong Nana.”
The purple mouse guest has two red fabric ears, with a clear face and no glasses.
John pointed to a little purple mouse. “Red glasses!” The mouse turned round. The red circles were its ears. “Wrong circles,” said Julia. The mouse wiggled both ears for them.
Julia studies the yellow bag’s portrait: round red glasses, curly silver hair and a toothy smile.
Julia peered at the label. Glasses. Hair. Smile. “Perhaps Nana has dressed up as something with none of those.”
John and Julia look up at a carrot-costumed guest. Julia still holds the yellow gift.
“A potato,” suggested John. They looked for a potato. They found a carrot. “Close,” said John. “Still wrong,” said Julia.
Behind the carrot, Nana’s red glasses peek above her white cloud costume. Julia looks away.
Behind the carrot stood a large white cloud. The cloud wore blue paper raindrops. It had round red glasses, just above the fluffy edge. Julia was looking the other way. John's robot box squeaked as he turned. “Excuse me, weather.”
Julia recognizes Nana laughing above her cloud costume with five blue raindrops.
“Hoo-hoo-HUP!” Julia knew that laugh. She turned back. Round red glasses. Curly silver hair. A great big smile above a very fluffy cloud. “NANA!”
Julia hugs Nana’s cloud while keeping the yellow bag in her outer hand.
Nana opened her arms. Julia hugged the cloud. It was a slightly squashy hug.
After the hug, Julia passes the yellow bag to Nana; Nana supports the bag’s base.
“I brought you mishloach manot,” said Julia. “Your Purim food gift.” She passed Nana the bag. “A delivery by lion,” said Nana. “How splendid.”
Nana holds the yellow bag and laughs while Julia clasps her own two hands and John watches.
Nana bent to look at the label. “You found the right smile.” “I found the right laugh,” said Julia. “I nearly gave your gift to a potato,” said John. Nana laughed so hard that her paper raindrops bobbled.
The yellow bag rests on the table. Nana holds a separate coral bag for Julia.
Then Nana lifted another bright bag from the table behind her. “I have a Purim gift for you, too.”
Close view: the coral bag’s label shows a smiling lion with Julia’s two brown pigtails and two ivory bows.
On its label was a lion. The lion had Julia's two brown pigtails and a very familiar smile. Julia opened her mouth.
Julia holds the coral gift. Nana makes playful lion paws and John raises one real arm.
“Hoo-hoo-HUP!” Nana opened hers. “ROAR!” John raised one arm.
John puts his arms down comfortably. Behind him Julia keeps the coral gift and the yellow bag stays on the table.
And put it down again. “Much better,” said the robot.

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