Ferris wheel – revive – dinosaur – split – disk
assumption – exceed – narrow – snickerdoodle – join
“Really John, I appreciate what you’re trying to do with all this, but I don’t think you can revive the collective spirit of the town with a Ferris wheel and some disk toss. It’s nice, but it’s just not the right time.”
“I had to do something, Frank,” said John Berchheld, the area’s MPP. “It’s early yet.”
“Some people’s basements are still underwater. Even if they wanted to, no one will able to come today. And the assumption is you used funding to pay for this. People won’t be happy.”
“It was all donation, Frank. I told you,” said John. He took a seat on a bench by the entrance; balloons were tied to the back of it and he ate a complimentary snickerdoodle from the nearby table. His purple tie blew in the wind under him as he rested his elbows on his knees, and looked down into the wet grass.
“I know, John, I know. It’s just how it looks.”
The two men were the only ones in the park except for Frank’s daughter who had ran over to the mechanical dinosaur and was now climbing on its detailed neck and head. Frank turned back to look at John. A moment passed with the men’s eyes locked. And Frank was about to say something more truthful when a minivan pulled up to the curb. Two mothers and six children said hello and then entered the fair. The men took their positions hosting games for the children. Before long, more families joined them. John and Frank had to split their attention to man multiple booths at once, but then other volunteers arrived too. Still, kids came on bikes, scores of them until the yard was full with smiling visitors, exceeding John’s hopes for the day.
Even if only by a narrow margin, John finally thought he’d done more good than not in the wake of the tragedy.
