Surprise Guest Today at 2:00 in the Gym!

"Lisa, who do you think it could be?

I think it's an astronaut," says Marco."

You don't know who it is," I say.

"Nobody knows who it is because it's a mystery."

Marco blows bubbles into his milk through a straw.

I try hard not to laugh.

He makes a face at me, and when I'm sure he is looking, I cross my eyes.

"I read in a magazine that if you close your eyes, you can hear things more clearly.

If we close our eyes, maybe we can hear things in the next room," I tell Marco.

"The gym is next to the lunch room, so I'm going to listen and find out who the special

guest is."

I close my eyes.

I hear a low, deep booming sound, but I have no idea what it could be.

"It sounds like thunder,” I tell Marco.

"Maybe it's a scientific machine for making thunderstorms or something.

The mystery guest must be a scientist."

"I want to listen," Marco says.

He closes his eyes and tries to listen, too.

"I hear the sound of a loud trumpet call," Marco tells me with confidence.

"There is an elephant in the gym.

The mystery guest is obviously a circus trainer."

"A trumpeting elephant is more deafening than that," I tell Marco.

I like to use big words like trumpeting and deafening in front of Marco.

I listen again.

There is a humming, buzzing sound that makes me feel warm right down to my toes."I hear

a hum," I exclaim.

"It sounds like lots of bees.

The mystery guest is a beekeeper!""No, it isn't," Marco declares.

He closes his eyes even tighter."I'm positive this time," he tells me.

"I hear an enormous hungry cow.

The mystery guest is a farmer and his giant cow.""What are you talking about?

There is no hungry cow noise.""Yes, there is," Marco argues.

He takes a deep breath and shouts, "Moooooooooo!"Suddenly the school bell rings, and we both realize

that it is already 2:00.

It's time to see the special guest!

Marco and I race each other to the gym and look inside the door.

"Wow!

This is so cool!"

Marco yells.

"How exciting!"

I agree, smiling.

There is no machine that makes weather, no elephant, no bees, and no hungry cow.

We see a man in a long, fancy black jacket holding a thin white baton.

All around him are musicians playing timpani drums, bassoons, cellos, trombones, and many

more instruments.

"They're musical instruments!"

Marco and I say at the same time.

The conductor hears us.

He turns around and says, "Welcome to

the orchestra!"