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garbage.

"Where's your brother? Didn't I tell you to stay

with him?"

"He climbed up in his tree, and he says he's not

coming down until you let him play with his trains." I

rattled off quickly. "He's even climbed higher than

ever."

Mommy's eyes widened.. She dropped what

was in her hands and rushed past me to the front door.

I followed her out of the house.

"Noble Atwell, you come right down here."

Mommy screamed up at him. "This instant." "Will you let me play with my trains?" "You will not play with those trains today. You

will not play with them ever again if you don't come

down this instant," she added.

Even I was surprised at how defiant Noble

could be. Instead of obeying, he turned and reached

for a higher branch.

"Noble Atwell!" Mommy shouted.

He grabbed the branch and started to pull

himself up, but the branch snapped. For an instant it

was as if the whole world had gone into stop-action, been put on pause. The realization that he was without any support and had lost his balance flashed on

Noble's face in bright astonishment.

Mommy screamed.

He flailed about as if he thought he might be

able to fly his way out of danger, and then he fell from

the tree in a swift, graceful drop like someone who

had concluded there was nothing else to do but relax

and face the music. He was high enough up so that

when his left foot hit first, it twisted sharply. He hit

next on his buttocks and then rolled head over heels to