Reason for Being Late

hen eight-year-old Katherine walked into class, the teacher looked at the clock. It was almost noon. Few students came to school that late without a good reason.

“Well, Katherine,” the teacher said, “would you like to tell us why you’re so late?”

“A moose,” Katherine replied.

“A moose?” the teacher asked, skeptically. “I can’t just write ‘a moose’ as a reason on the late slip. The secretary will think I’m crazy. What about a moose?”

“Well, a moose wandered into our yard this morning,” Katherine said. “The dogs decided to chase her. They chased her a distance down the road, but then she decided...