The Sky’s the Limit: My Journey with Maryellen

Before I come to a decision about staying or going, Maryellen and I walk pass a new store opening up. Trees in pots line the sidewalk, and inside we can see a colorful riot of flowers and plants. They’re bright and gorgeous and I can imagine they smell amazing. Then, something in the window catches my eye. I shake Maryellen’s sleeve and point to a sign in the window. It says

• Enter the contest.
• Think of a name of the slogan for our new store.
• Draw a logo.
• You could win a cash prize!

I tell Maryellen that she should enter the contest. She’s great at sketching. And if she wins, she can buy a new bike. Maryellen thoughtfully says that she does like to sketch. And it would be fun to think of a name and slogan, especially for a place that sells trees and plants. I ask her if she’s ever entered a contest before, and she says yes. Then she says maybe I should enter, too. I can try to win money for a telescope. I tell her that it’s not for me. I’m not good at drawing. This contest has her name written all over it.

We’re both so excited that we walk faster, chatting about ideas all the way home. When we returned to the Larkins’ house, we go straight to Maryellen’s room. The box of construction paper and markers we used for her presentation are still there, stuffed under Beverly’s bed, so we plop down on the ground. There’s not much space between all the beds, so we’re squished knee-to-knee. Maryellen does a few doodles while we swap ideas.

Then Beverly appears in the doorway, followed by Scooter. Beverly’s cardboard crown is askew, but she’s still as queenly as ever. She asks what we’re doing, and Maryellen says, “Nothing.” Beverly looks stubborn. I can tell she’s not going to go away, so I tell her we’re working on an art project. Maryellen says it’s important, so Beverly should go. Beverly crossly says that we can’t make her go. This is her room, too. Maryellen sighs and says that Beverly can stay. But she can’t bother us.

Beverly is getting red in the face. I hand her a sheet of construction paper and a few markers. I ask her to draw a ballerina for me. Beverly nods and says that she’ll draw herself. She sits cross-legged on the bed and is soon happily absorbed in her drawing.

Maryellen whispers that I’m good with little kids. She asks me if I have to share a room with my sister. I tell her I do. When my grandmother moved in, I moved in with my sister. We haven’t been getting along very well since. Maryellen asks if it’s too crowded and I nod. All of us stuff is all crammed together. And Emma doesn’t like the star stuff I put up. Whenever she comes into the room, Emma puts her earphones on and retreats into her music as if I’m not there. I don’t tell Maryellen that part though because I haven’t seen even one kid with earphones in Maryellen’s time.

Maryellen says that she and Beverly used to share the room with Tom and Mikey. She really wanted Carolyn and Joan to move in so this could be an all-girls room. But before the older girls would agree to move, Maryellen had to learn how to be tidy. I agree that sharing a room is hard. It’s been a big change for me and my sister. Maryellen said she had to change. She had to turn over a new leaf.

Suddenly, Maryellen looks at me, her face lit with joy. That’s it. That’s the perfect name for the new plant store. Quick as a wink, she sketches a tree branch, and it’s amazing how she can draw one with just a few strokes. Then, she draws big leaves on it and on one leaf she prints A NEW LEAF. It’s brilliant. A name and a logo.

Maryellen says now all we need to do is think of a slogan. I tell Maryellen that the branch she drew is really good. I like the way the big limbs branch out into lots of little ones. Maryellen grabs me up in a big hug and says I’m a genius. Now she has an idea for a slogan. Quickly, Maryellen adds it to her sign and holds it up. Above the tree limbs, in letters decorated with leaves, it says, “Branch out! Shop at” and the words, A NEW LEAF appear on the big leaf under the limb.

I’m not the genius, Maryellen is. Beverly leans down and looks at the sketch. She says it’s good. But Maryellen isn’t satisfied. She works hard, drawing and re-drawing, printing and re-printing, until her sign is just the way she wants it. She’s adding her finishing touches to the work when the phone rings.