The Magic Cricket Ticket

A cricket umpire once after a match, picked up a cricket ticket from a cricket wicket. At first, it didn't seem very special at all ... it's origins, the umpire had trouble to recall. Once he'd picked it up off the wicket, the umpire really didn't know where to stick it. He certainly didn't realise that actually there was magic in it. So the umpire put the cricket ticket into his coat for safe keeping till later, careful not to get it mixed up with his tickets for the theatre. On the bus, you could hear the bus conductor curse. The umpire had got the magic cricket ticket mixed up with the pound notes inside his purse. Fearing he'd lost it, the umpire put his hand inside his pocket. Out the cricket ticket flew all by itself, like a paper aeroplane, and the umpire feared he would never find it again. When it landed on the ground, suddenly, all by itself, it started spinning around and around and landed on the shelf. Then suddenly, as if by magic, the magic cricket ticket started to perform magic tricks. It polished all the cups and saucers and cleaned the pots and pans. The umpire tried to catch it on the stands with one of his hands, but the cricket ticket was so magic, it didn't even land. Everyone wanted a magic cricket ticket such as this - that would do the housework in a magical whizz. The magic cricket ticket sped across the floor. The umpire almost trod on it, but it sneaked beneath the door and scored a four. Very soon, it had brushed the cat and swept all the dust from off the mat. For a minute or two, it rested inside the umpire's cricket hat. The magic cricket ticket was as quick as a flash ... nothing could stop it as it made a round the house dash. Downstairs, then upstairs, the cricket ticket flew in the wind ... eventually after about an hour, the cricket ticket blew in the bin. The umpire wondered why the cricket ticket was late - it was stuck as a bookmark in between pages seven and eight. For a minute or two, the umpire thought he'd lost it, but then he found the cricket ticket again - from the where the postman had post it. The cricket ticket had spent a whole day in the postbox outside, looking for a more comfortable place, away from the vacuum cleaner to hide. Then the umpire found the cricket ticket in a paperchase - it was so magic, it won the race ! That put a smile on the umpire's face. The cricket ticket soared off again ... luckily, the umpire found it on the scoreboard looking bored under an umbrella in the rain. Rain stopping play was the only thing that could keep the cricket ticket in one place !

© Jacqueline Richards 2007