The rain on the roof was the first sound I heard. It was early. Nala jumped off the bed, and I went downstairs to let her out. She didn’t go out into the rain. Henry did. I waited to let him in, left the door open and went back to bed. We all slept another hour.

The rain has stopped. The day is dark and damp. No breeze ruffles the leaves. Everything is still in the heavy air.

A rainy Saturday would never have stopped me when I was a kid. Saturdays were not to be wasted. I used to love to ride my bike as fast as I could through the puddles. The water parted and a tidal wave flew out from each side of my bike. I used to lift my feet off the pedals so my sneakers wouldn’t get wet. I never bypassed a good puddle.

My allowance was fifty cents. My father expected me to save it. He was wrong. Fifty cents was wealth to me. I could shop at Woolworth’s. I loved that store in the square. It was an old building with wooden floors. I remember the toys were in the aisle on the left. I could buy a balsa wood plane for around ten cents. I learned to be careful sliding the pieces as they split easily. The tail was red plastic. My planes dipped and fell when I tossed them in the air. Their landings were seldom soft.

I remember cereal submarines. They were grey plastic, and when filled with baking powder, they dove and surfaced. The tub was the perfect spot to let the sub go. I’d lean on the side of the tub and watch until the baking powder dissolved, and the sub had to be reloaded. We used to open cereals boxes on the bottoms so we could get the prizes. We used to fight over whose turn it was for the toy.

The milk left after I ate all my cereal was sweet. It had cereal crumbs, bits of Rice Krispies floating on the top. I always drank the milk straight from the bowl. Sometimes I was messy, and the milk spilled under my chin.

I heard the gobbles of turkeys this morning. They were close. They were the only bird sounds. I saw the male cardinal fly right by me. The female is usually close, but I didn’t see her. They like the sunflower seeds.

Today I clean upstairs. I noticed cat hair on the toilet seat. I guessed Jack was getting drinks. I know Gwen likes to lie on the cool tile floor. The upstairs is their domain.