Mr. Faigelbaum looked down at where Efraim had been coloring. There was nobody there!

Mrs. Faigelbaum was going away to visit her mother for a couple of days. Her mother was recovering from an operation. Reluctantly, she’d decided to leave Efraim behind. The lively little boy would make it impossible for her mother to rest. Mr. Faigelbaum would watch him.

Mrs. Faigelbaum warned her husband that Efraim needed watching closely.

“And lately, he’s developed a new trick,” Mrs. Faigelbaum continued. “He loves going outdoors. If the front door is open for any reason, he’ll try to escape. You’ll need to keep a close eye.”

Mr. Faigelbaum nodded.

“Don’t worry. Everything will be fine,” he declared confidently.

When Efraim woke up the next morning, his mother was gone. Daddy was there to give him his cereal, so the little boy didn’t mind. Also, Mommy always sat and fed him. Daddy just gave him the spoon and let him feed himself.

Efraim used the spoon to turn his cereal into a big mush. Half of it fell onto the floor, but Efraim didn’t care. He chucked his spoon onto the floor as well. Then he put the rest of the mush everywhere but in his mouth. He smeared some on his face and some in his hair.

Daddy, who’d been making himself a coffee, looked in his direction just then.

“Oh no! What have you done?” he exclaimed in dismay. “What a mess!”