A Breakfast Visitor

by Angela Dermyer

“We have a surprise visitor for breakfast today,” Father said one morning. “Can anyone guess who it is?”

Lindy wiped the milk from her face and put her glass down. Mother and Father were sitting in their usual places, and her brother, Mike, was across the table eating a piece of toast.

“I don’t see anyone here but us,” Lindy said. “Is someone at the door?”

“No, no one is at the door,” Father answered. “Guess again.”

“Did someone come last night after we went to sleep? Is someone waiting upstairs to surprise us?” Mike asked.

“No, no one came after you went to sleep last night, and there isn’t anyone upstairs to surprise you. This visitor is here with us right now.”

Mike leaned back and looked under the table. “There’s no one under the table,” he said with a smile on his face.

Lindy looked all around. “I still don’t see anyone anywhere,” she said.

“We can’t see this visitor,” Father said. “We have to listen for him.”

The house was quiet as they all sat still and listened.

Once again they were all quiet while Lindy listened and listened. She couldn’t hear a visitor.

She shut her eyes tightly and listened again. “I still don’t hear anyone,” she said.

“Let’s give Lindy a hint,” Mother suggested. “Our visitor sounds like teedily, teedily, teedily, tee to me.”

“He sounds like wheedly, wheedly, wheedly, whee to me,” Father said.

“I hear him!” Mike suddenly said. “I hear him now.”

Father smiled. “Now let’s see if Lindy can hear him.”

“He sounds like chirpity, chirpity, chirpity, chirp to me,” Mike laughed.

Lindy listened once more. Then she smiled. “Now I hear our visitor,” she said. “It’s a bird and it’s come with a beautiful song.”

“Yes, Lindy,” Father replied. “A special bird called a wren has come to visit us at breakfast today.”

“I hope it comes again tomorrow,” Lindy said. “I think it’s a happy teedily, wheedly, chirpity visitor!”

Illustrated by Julie Fuhriman