Little Red Wagon

We were four towheaded kids piling into a little red wagon on our way to the supermarket. My little brother and I squeezed between my sister, the oldest, and in the front with each leg kicked over the edge, and my older brother who was on the back rim pretending to be a caboose. Mom started pulling us along with a tug, another tug, tugging, and off we go. My sister quickly hopped out shouting, “I’ll pull, I’ll pull.” When she took the helm of the long black handle it didn’t budge. She hollered at the caboose to get out and push. He did, while counting his steps and bouncing a stick off the sidewalk. Mom turned around signaling to hurry it along. Mom always wanted to get the groceries and have us all back home before dark. There we were, collecting all the treasures of the world in our red sailing pirate ship; peanut butter, jelly, spaghetti, bread, butter, milk, cereal, cheese! As we journeyed back over the grass patches, curbs, painted intersections, we were Phileas Fogg and his hot air balloon, Perseus and Pegasus, and Mom always the little engine that could.