Scratch! Scratch! Scratch!

Dawa Lahmu Yolmo

Every day after school,
Manu plays hopscotch.
She jumps and counts.
1, 2, and 3.
4, 5, and 6.
7, 8, 9, and 10.

But today Manu is feeling itchy-scratchy
on her tummy. She jumps and counts.
1, 2, and 3.
SCRATCH!
4, 5, and 6.
SCRATCH! SCRATCH!
7, 8, 9, and 10.
SCRATCH! SCRATCH! SCRATCH!

She sees tiny
itchy-scratchy bumps.
1, 2, and 3.
On her tummy!
4, 5, and 6.
On her arms!
7, 8, 9, and 10.
On her back!
Itchy-scratchy
bumps everywhere!

“You have chickenpox,” says Amma.
“You cannot go to school.”

Manu plops herself on the bed and goes,
SCRATCH!
SCRATCH! SCRATCH!
SCRATCH! SCRATCH! SCRATCH!

“Do not scratch!” says Amma.
It makes Manu even
more itchy-scratchy!

When Amma and Baba are not looking,
SCRATCH!
After eating porridge,
SCRATCH! SCRATCH!

“Do not scratch!”
yell Amma and Baba.

But when she lies on
the bed, again she goes,
SCRATCH!
SCRATCH! SCRATCH!
SCRATCH! SCRATCH!
SCRATCH!

Manu tries and tries not to
SCRATCH! SCRATCH!
She plays snakes and ladders.
She dreams up many stories.
She forgets to SCRATCH! SCRATCH!

Slowly, the bumps disappear. Manu counts.
10, 9, and 8. 7, 6, and 5. 4, 3, 2, and 1.
Until one day Manu pulls her shirt up.
All the itchy-scratchy bumps are...
GONE!

Now Manu can play hopscotch.
She jumps and counts.
1, 2, and 3.
4, 5, and 6.
7, 8, 9, and 10.