“The first few days when Rosa goes for a walk, she lies right down on the sidewalk and pretends she’s dead. The daycare ladies ask her aunt, ‘Does Rosa usually lie down and pretend she’s dead?’ ‘Yes, she does,’ says Rosa’s aunt. But after a week Rosa isn’t as tired anymore. She starts walking faster.”
“Summer is over. The fields and forests are gone, and now there are just streets and cars everywhere. When Rosa and her aunt go out for a walk, Rosa sits down on the sidewalk. Or she lies down and closes her eyes. ”
“Then she cries loudly and a lot. Grandma thinks she’s probably just dropped the coin purse on the sidewalk. Didn’t she see it on the way back? ‘No,’ screams Molly. ‘It’s been stolen!’ Grandma goes out with her to look for it. When they have gotten halfway to the bakery, Molly finds it. How lucky! Grandma goes home and Molly walks the rest of the way by herself. ”
“It was a perfect morning for anyone with new boots. Enough rain had fallen in the night to fill the gutters with muddy streams and to bring worms squirming out of the lawns onto the sidewalks.”