“Excuse me everyone – eyes and ears on me!” shouted Eagle Bay Elementary School’s Principal, Ms. Snicket. “Miss Walten is ill today, so I’m afraid to say that you have a substitute teacher.”

The entire fourth-grade class smiled and looked around at there classmates in glee.

Ms. Snicket cleared her throat causing the students to obediently look toward her. “Mr. Davis will be here after recess and I expect you to behave for him as if he was your regular teacher. He will be writing down everything that happens today. Now, before you go for recess Mrs. Coffin is going to read you a story.”

The old librarian sidled in slowly and began to read the class an old story called Tom thumb….

Tom Davis sat in his car staring blankly at the mural of children holding hands on the school’s wall. He had agreed to substitute at an elementary school, when he was quite obviously more interested in coaching football, but work experience wasn’t easy to come by, so he took the job.

He jerked suddenly as the bell for recess rang and hundreds upon hundreds of little freckle-faced munchkins sprang out of the building and into the playground beside the parking lot.

“I guess that’s my cue’, the 25 year old said with a sigh trying to open his car door. It was one of those old Subarus with the mismatched colored doors known for not opening after 10 or so years of driving them.

Tom moved his body sideways, swearing under his breathe, and kicked the door, but it was jammed. He kicked and pushed and BANG! He hit his head on the underside of the dashboard.

Then darkness….

A ball rolled out into the empty parking lot of Eagle Bay Elementary. It stopped rolling just in time for fourth-grader Jason Stevenson to notice the coolest toy car he had ever seen.

The bell rang to end recess and he picked up the car, stuck it into his pocket, and went inside to wait for his substitute teacher.