Dear Diary,

     Would you call me weird if I told you I know a fairy? or would you lie and just think it like everyone else?
 Well, think what you want, I don't care. My name is Lucretia Wilson, I'm 9 years old and I know a fairy.  If you don't believe me, just ask Paul Carlo.  He's my best friend and the smartest kid in school. I've known Paul Carlo my whole life and he's never told a lie.  Even when John Dixon broke Mrs. Halloway's window and blamed it on Paul Carlo.  John said he would smash Paul's face in if he told on him.  Paul said it was worth it.

     My mom says it's mostly because I bought Paul Carlo milkshakes every day for a week, and fed them to him by spoon.  Mom says we're gonna get married, which just burns me up, cause I know I'm gonna marry Derek Jeter. Sheesh, you'd think she'd be happier to have a famous baseball player for a son-in-law than some smelly old kid who knows every star in the sky the way most boys know the Lakers' starting lineup.  The problem is, Paul doesn't stink at all.  He just smells like soap and bubblegum.  But that's besides the point.

     The point is we're in fourth grade and talking marriage is just gross.  I wish that woman would get off my case sometimes.  I'm sorry.  It's just that I get all steamed up over this love and marriage business, and I have a mother who doesn't let things go once she gets an idea in her head.

     Jewely says it's due to my impatience and that I ought to just let people be people.  That's easy for her to say.  Fairies don't have mothers.  Oh yeah, that's the fairy's name: Jewely Patchouli.

     Paul Carlo and I met Jewely that week after John smashed his face in.  Like I said, I was buying him milkshakes that whole week because of how bad his face looked with his black eye and crooked nose.  Anyway, we were sitting on the bench outside Clark's drugstore drinking our milkshakes when a butterfly landed right on my nose.  It tickled so bad I burst into a fit of giggles and would you believe that butterfly just hung on for the ride?  A dozen more butterflies came flying across the street to find their buddy.

     That's when we saw her.  I can't believe we never noticed her before. She's the most beautiful woman you've ever seen, with shiny yellow hair and bright blue eyes.  That's nothing.  It's her smile that's magical.  Just as we were looking at the butterflies leaving her yard, she looked up from her gardening.

     She smiled that Jewely smile and it's like the whole town looked like we just took off our sunglasses.  That's how bright everything was.  Funny thing is, we weren't wearing sunglasses.  Next thing we knew, we were standing right in that lady's yard.  I don't even remember crossing the street.  Later, Paul Carlo and I decided she must have put some sort of spell on us because for one thing, we both know better than to just go in some stranger's yard and two, we certainly know to look both ways when we cross the street. Like I said, we're in the fourth grade. I ask you this, though.  How can you be sure you looked both ways if you don't remember even crossing the street?

     We looked around that yard with our mouths wide open.  I'd never seen so many butterflies, but not only that, she had flowers even Thad had never seen in any of his books.

   Aside from the palm trees, coco plums, and coonties typical in Florida yards, she had more species than any three proud families' tropical oasis.

Gazing over Jewely's roof, I saw the promise of a jungle paradise in the backyard.  The luring hum and cool breeze of Jewely's luscious gardens put Paul Carlo in an almost hypnotic trance.  I wasn't far behind him, but the glazed far-off look on my buddy's face pulled me back to my senses.  I managed to eek out a weak introduction and, dragging Paul Carlo behind, high-tailed it out of there.

     That night, I went to sit with mama on the back porch while she had her tea.  "How's Paul Carlo's face these days?" she asked.

"Still pretty bad, mama."

"That's a shame.  That boy never ceases to amaze me."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, just that Paul Carlo made a hard choice that I don't think most people would have the strength to make.  Annie Halloway would've hollered for about a minute; nothing compared to John Dixon's sense of justice.  I just respect that Paul Carlo would rather get beat up than lose his reputation.  He took the longview; he knew his bruises would fade long before Mrs. Halloway, or any adult she complained to, would respect him again."

After mama braided my hair, and I was lying in bed, I thought about what she said.  I wondered whether I would be smart enough to have the longview if I was called to it.  I drifted off, thinking of ways I might impress mama someday.