Complete the letter written by Toto-Chan's teacher to the principal
Answers
tTOTTO-CHAN
The Little Girl at the Window
By Tetsuko Kuroyanagi
Translated by Dorothy Britton
The Railroad Station
They got off the Oimachi train at Jiyugaoka Station, and Mother took Totto-chan by
the hand to lead her through the ticket gate. She had hardly ever been on a train
before and was reluctant to give up the precious ticket she was clutching.
“May 1 keep it!” Totto-chan asked the ticket collector.
“No, you can't,” he replied, taking it from her.
She pointed to his box filled with tickets. "Are those all yours!"
“No, they belong to the railroad station,” he replied, as he snatched away tickets from
people going out.
“Oh.” Totto-chan gazed longingly into the box and went on, “When I grow up I'm
going to sell railroad tickets!”
The ticket collector glanced at her for the first time. “My little boy wants a job in the
station, too, so you can work together.”
Totto-chan stepped to one side and took a good look at the ticket collector. He was
plump and wore glasses and seemed rather kind.
“Hmm.” She put her hands on her hips and carefully considered the idea. "I wouldn't
mind at all working with your son,” she said. “I’ll think it over. But I'm rather busy
just now as I'm on my way to a new school."
She ran to where Mother waited, shouting, “I’m going to be a ticket seller!”
Mother wasn't surprised, but she said, “I thought you were going to be a spy.”
As Totto-chan began walking along holding Mother's hand, she remembered that
until the day before she had been quite sure she wanted to be a spy.
But what fun it would be to be in charge of a box full of tickets!