Many children in my neighborhood in Skokie were attracted to the flood
control retention pond on Golf Road and Karlov Avenue. They called it
"the pit". They were walking their dogs there, racing down the slopes,
and sledding in winter.
What aroused their curiosity the most was the fenced gate at the corner of
the pit. Behind the gate they could see a dark tunnel. A lock was on that
grilled gate.
A rumor went that a witch kept the key to the gate. All the children waited
for Halloween when the witch would come out. They hoped to trick her and get
the key to the gate. Five children, the most courageous, were selected for the
task.
There was a black cat in my neighborhood called Fudge. Carolyn, Barry, Andrew,
Ashley and Irene, our five selected children, decided to follow Fudge on
Halloween. They believed Fudge would lead them to the witch.
Indeed, Fudge led them to the witch's dwelling. She lived in a big red-brick house facing the strange
pink-and-teal painted house.
With great apprehension the five children knocked on the witch's door.
"Trick or treat!" they shouted as she opened the door, smiled, and invited them in.
They should have not entered, but their sense of adventure pushed them to it.
Carolyn sneaked into the witch's bedroom to search around while the others tried to fish some red apples out of a big bowl
and distracting the witch.
On a big dresser Carolyn spotted a huge key that seemed to be the right one for the task.
She stuffed it into her pocket and hurried back into the livingroom. There she
gestured her friends to follow her outside.
The witch seemed unhappy to see them leave before she could trick them. The
children promised to be back.
.......
