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Monday
Dear Diary,
Abigail handed out invites for her birthday party in class today. Miss Cassady looked at me funny when I didn’t get one, I think she heard my tummy bubbling with sadness. I tried not to look like I cared but at lunch I cried in the bathroom until my nose felt sore from blowing it. I didn’t want everyone to see so I wrapped my scarf around my face and pretended I was cold. I think Abigail knew, she kept looking at me like she wanted to laugh.
Miss Cassady spoke to mummy after school again so I played on the swings outside the classroom so she could see me. I think they’re best friends, but it’s sad they only see each other at school, I wonder if that’s because Miss Cassady lives there? That would be sad. I would hate to live at school, it’s the worst place in the world. I didn’t mind waiting for mum, I don’t ever get to play on the swings at school. No one ever lets me. I pumped the swing really high using my legs like daddy taught me. I felt like Wonder Woman. Mum took me to the sweet shop on the way home, I got to pick out 5 different things! When she paid, mum asked me if I felt better now. I wish Miss Cassady and mummy wouldn’t talk about me when they played together.
We had chicken and rice for dinner, it was yucky and dry. I heard daddy shout at mummy later because she spent our dinner money on my sweets. My chocolate bar tasted funny after he said that.
I hope I sleep good tonight, mummy forgot to leave the bathroom light on to scare away the bad dreams. She forgot to kiss my head too. She forgets a lot when her and daddy have been fighting. If I have bad dreams, I will tell you tomorrow.
Love,
Sally
Tuesday
Dear Diary,
Something crazy cool happened today. We were at school doing math and all the lights went out, some of the girls screamed. Luckily the sun was bright today because I didn’t want anyone to know I was scared of the dark. Miss Cassady didn’t seem very worried at first. But after Principal Hill came by to talk to her in whispers her face got very serious. I thought the lights would come back after a few minutes but it didn’t.
I don’t know how long it had been, but after a while people’s mums and dads starting showing up. Abigail’s mum was crying when she came to get her. Michael B had a spiderman watch on and he told me it was 12:45 just before his granny came to come get him. The clock on the wall wasn’t working, but I don’t think it was very long after Mike left before my parents came. Daddy’s never picked me up from school before because he always works until dinner time. They were holding each other’s hands and when they saw me daddy lifted me into his arms and held on for a long time.
There were people everywhere on the walk home, I saw millions of police men running around chasing people in and out of shops and talking to people at their front doors. There were empty cars all over the roads and daddy didn’t put me down until we got inside our house. Our house was cold and dark, and even though we couldn’t turn any lights on, mummy shut all the curtains and daddy pushed the bookshelf in front of our glass back door.
We had spam sandwiches for dinner and mum found some candles that she lit and put everywhere in the house so we could see again. I was still scared though; it wasn’t bright enough. It didn’t help that there were lots of scary noises outside the house, you could hear screaming and shouting and smashing noises that made me cover my ears with my hands and made dad stare nervously at the windows.
Even though it’s a bit scary now, I had a great day, I love going home from school early! I hope I can stay home tomorrow, like if it was a snow day.
Love,
Sally
Wednesday
Dear Diary,
Today was the best day ever! I didn’t have to go to school! This morning I woke up all on my own because mummy didn’t have to wake me. It was amazing. Daddy was sitting on the rocking chair in the corner of my room when I woke up, he didn’t have to go to work! Mummy made me cereal for breakfast and her and dad looked at each other weird when I asked why I couldn’t have my toast.
After breakfast I got to go next door with mummy to see The Darlings and their new baby because daddy was going out and didn’t want us to be home alone, which was strange. But it was fun because I could to play with baby Oscar. Mrs Darling kept bursting into tears and Mr Darling had to take me to the baby room so my mum could talk alone with her. All the adults were acting strange, they must really be missing tv.
Mr Darling made me PB and J sandwiches for dinner AND lunch which is my favourite! After dinner a police lady knocked on the door and Mrs Darling took me and Oscar upstairs, mummy and Mr Darling spoke to her for so long, I fell asleep on Mrs Darling’s bed.
I woke up when Mr Darling blew up a big, blue bed. Mummy and I are going to sleep on it tonight on the floor of Oscar’s room, it’s going to be my first ever sleep over! I cried when mummy told me we couldn’t go home and get my diary and tommy teddy, so Mr Darling went and got them for me. Mr Darling is the best, I wish I was Mrs Darling.
Love,
Sally
Friday
Dear Diary,
Daddy’s still not come home yet. Mummy kept pacing in the Darling’s kitchen and she cut her finger at lunch time when she was chopping tomatoes. She shouted a bad word really loudly and when I tried to help her, she looked at me really sadly and then started crying hard. When she sat on the ground and started crying into her knees Mr Darling took my hand, he took me into Oscar’s room and we played with his stuffed animals. Oh, and he told me I could call him Kevin. Kevin said that I shouldn’t worry and that my dad would be home soon. I didn’t know I was supposed to be worrying until he told me that.
After lunch, Kevin went next door to my house and he got lots of my toys and books and we played grocery store until another police lady knocked on the door. She gave Kevin a box full of food and water, and then another one to my mum. Mrs Darling called me upstairs, but I heard mum ask if they knew when the power would come back on as Mrs Darling led me into Oscar’s room. I hope the power never comes on.
Love,
Sally
Sunday
Dear Diary,
Daddy came back today, and he brought granny and grandpa with him. He scooped me up in his arms the second he saw me, mummy ran in from the kitchen and daddy pulled her into the hug too. It was the greatest hug I’ve ever had. Granny and Grandpa were crying and mummy started crying too when she hugged them both. I asked daddy why he was gone so long, he said he had to go get granny and grandpa. I asked why it took so long and he said he walked there. Which is strange, because they live very far away from us, usually we drive.
We went back to our house after that, and Granny did some painting with me while Daddy and Grandpa loudly nailed wooden boards across all the windows and the backdoor. I screamed at daddy when he said I couldn’t play in the garden anymore and he told me I needed to be quite and that I don’t understand that he’s keeping me safe. All the grown-ups are acting weird. But I’m glad everyone’s at home to play with me, even if they keep crying.
It got really cold tonight, mummy wrapped me up in a coat, indoors! People outside are still making lots of noise, Mummy had to stop daddy from going outside to tell everyone to shut up! Daddy is really angry. When he saw the box of food the nice police lady gave us, he threw it across the room and said “THIS IS RIDICULOUS!” I like learning new words. When granny ran me a cold bath, I told HER that was RIDICULOUS! Her mouth smiled, but her eyes didn’t.
I have four blankets on my bed tonight, as well as my quilt! Mummy’s going to lie in bed with me until I fall asleep. She didn’t forget to kiss my head tonight, she kissed it a thousand times. I’m glad she stayed with me, all the candles are melted down now and you can’t make them light up anymore, so it’s really dark.
Love,
Sally
Monday
Dear Diary,
I woke up to mum and dad screaming at each other today. I put my pillow over my head and pretended to stay asleep until they finished. When I got downstairs in my pjs and big puffy coat, daddy was dressed and carrying the big baseball bat from the garage. He had a helmet on and a scarf that covered up most of his face. Mummy was sat at the table and she wouldn’t look at him. Daddy took my hand in his as I walked past and squeezed it.
Granny made me breakfast, the milk that the police lady gave us was still cold, our house is keeping the food as cold as a fridge would, which is lucky because the fridge isn’t cold anymore. But I miss toast.
Daddy came when grandpa and I were playing dress up. He had a shopping trolly from the supermarket and it was full of stuff! He had loads of food and clothes and drinks! We never buy that much when we go shopping. I heard mummy tell Mrs Darling next door that it’s hard being poor and not being able to buy nice things once. I don’t think we’re poor anymore. When he leant down to give me a new dolly, he was smiling big and wide, but his nose was bleeding and his eye was closed and puffy.
Mummy and daddy are fighting. I hope they stop soon so I can fall asleep.
Love,
Sally
P.S I fell asleep to mummy and daddy still fighting. She wasn’t happy that daddy went to play baseball, or shopping.
Thursday
Dear Diary,
I miss tv. I’ve drawn so many pictures of my favourite characters, but now I just want to see them for real. I miss outside, when daddy came home from shopping again, his hair and the top of the full-up cart were covered in snow. I love snow. I cried until bath time. My baths are warm now, daddy’s made a fire in the garden and he cooks us food and makes the water hot for my bath time. He’s much happier now. He goes out for hours everyday and brings back food and toys. I like not being poor.
Mummy and Daddy aren’t talking anymore. Mummy doesn’t talk much at all. She whispers with Granny in the kitchen when they make lunch, and she cries in the bathroom when she thinks no one can hear. I think she’s crying because of daddy. I asked him why he comes home with bruises and torn clothes when he goes to the supermarket and he told me there are angry people outside. That’s why he keeps the windows boarded up. Mummy didn’t like him telling me that. She been shouting at him ever since.
She’s still shouting at him now.
Love,
Sally
Tuesday
Dear Diary,
When I woke up this morning the lights were on. I was sweating in the three layers of pjs and two sweaters I had on last night. Mummy had a big grin on her face as she sat at the dining table drinking a coffee. I think she missed coffee. Daddy tried to bring her one from his firepit but she just stared angrily at him until he left the room.
I didn’t know where daddy was. Granny and Grandpa were on the couch watching the news. The pretty lady on tv was talking about what happened. She said that the whole world lost power! She said no one knows what happened and I heard her start to say that something called the guvonmont were just now “making contact” with other countries when granny noticed I had come downstairs and turned the tv off. I asked if I could watch cartoons and she let me sit on her lap while I watched them. Mummy made me toast.
Grandpa pulled the wooden boards off the windows, and the sun was so bright we all had to put sunglasses on. Outside there were people everywhere, but this time they were cleaning up all the cars and the mess that was everywhere. I could see firemen and policemen all over our street. Mummy let me go outside to give them glasses of lemonade. It was the first time she touched something daddy had brought home from the shops during the blackout. That’s what I heard grandpa call it: the blackout.
I heard daddy crying in his bedroom when I went to go pee. I asked mummy what was wrong and she stopped smiling for the first time today. I followed her to the bedroom after dinner and listened outside their door. She told him he should be happy, that life was normal again. He said normal’s not good enough! And that THEY WERE LIVING LIKE KINGS! She said, yeah from the 18 hundreds. I don’t know what that means but it made daddy giggle. Daddy doesn’t want to go back to work. Mummy said she understands. I understand too, I don’t want to go back to school. I told mummy that and she smiled and said: I don’t think you’ll be going back just yet.
I hope that’s true.
Love,
Sally
Friday
Dear Diary,
Granny and Grandpa left to go home today. Daddy took them in the car after Kevin next door used HIS car to make ours work. Kevin smiled at me as I watched from the window. Kevin’s the best.
When granny and grandpa left, they hugged me really hard. I didn’t know old people could be so strong! Granny got teary again and looked at me real funny. She said, you remember this hunny, one day you’ll tell your grandchildren about this.
I don’t know what that means.
School’s going to start again soon. I told mummy I didn’t want to go back, I screamed at her until my face went bright red. Daddy grabbed my hand and told me that if he had to go back so did I. They both giggled. They’re both happy now.
It’s supposed to snow again tomorrow, and I’ll get to play in it this time. I think I’ll be happy then.
Love,
Sally
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