Page 74

He nodded. "Very good," he said and slapped

the table. Then he stood up. "Your uncle Tyler hereby

swears to keep his big mouth shut and his philosophical muttering to himself."

"No, don't do that," I said, laughing. "I came

here for those tidbits of wisdom."

He laughed and hugged me just as Aunt

Zipporah appeared in the kitchen doorway, still in her

nightgown, her eyes looking like they were filled with

spiderwebs.

"What is going on here? It's still the middle of

the night."

"Not quite, Zipporah. Alice and I are solving the world's problems. We thought if we could do that

before breakfast, we'd enjoy lunch."

"Did he wake you up?"

"No, I was up," I said. She tilted her head.

"Little white lie," I added. "I'm taking your advice," I

said, and she brightened a bit.

"I'm going up to shower and dress. Since you've

spoiled my night's sleep, I might as well start the

day."

"See you two later," Uncle Tyler said, starting

out.

"We're going to do a little shopping this

morning. I told you, remember?" Aunt Zipporah

called to him

"Yes, no problem. We're fine. Take all the time

you need," he said and left.

"I'll be right down," Aunt Zipporah said. "Eat

something. Don't wait for me."

She hurried back upstairs.