Lady Kathleen

Our little stowaway had sneaked down in the very bottom of the ship. It was a really big ship too. It had lots of sails on it. They caught the wind and that's what made it go fast on the water. She could hear the sails whip in the wind and the water splash against the side of the ship. (Grandma Lu pointed to the sails on the picture of a pirate ship.) Well, she didn't like it down there one little bit. Yuk! It was dark and it didn't smell nice either. She needed to get out of there. But she had to think. She just couldn't walk out on the deck and ask for a job. "Hmm, what shall I do? I don't want to get caught being a girl because then they would send me back. What I need is a friend."

One of the children said, "What is that little girl's name, Grandma Lu?"
"Arghh, shiver me timbers, You scared me! What shall we call her? Let's decide on a name for her."  Marlee jumped up from her chair and said, "Marlee, Marlee. I want to be the stowaway on the ship!" Some of the children laughed and said, "Okay, Grandma Lu, you can call her Marlee, but she can't go by that name or the pirates will send her back for sure." So Grandma Lu put her finger to her cheek and thought and thought. "You are exactly right. Let's call her Mark. That way it should help her keep up her disguise. What do you think of that name?" The children all agreed and sat very still while Grandma Lu continued on with her story.
 Grandma Lu looked over the room and saw that Myla did not look very happy about the story. Grandma Lu said, "Myla, why do you have a sad face today? Is something the matter? Myla said, "Yes, I don't like that Marlee is down in the bottom of the ship, can you get her out of there?" Grandma Lu grinned and said, "Okay I will try. Give me a minute to think of a solution for the poor little tyke." The children all laughed and munched on some popcorn waiting for Grandma Lu to continue.

"Well, I tell you what Marlee decided to do. She started to sneak ever so quietly up the stairs so she wouldn't be heard by anyone. She was almost to the top of the stairs when suddenly the door opened and there in front of her was a lady pirate! Well as you can imagine, Marlee shook and shivered she was so scared. But the lady pirate laughed and said, "Well, well, young man just what do you think you are a doin' down here? Yur awful small to be a pirate, now ain't ye?"
Oh, this is just what Marlee or otherwise known as Mark was afraid of. She had been discovered. Maybe a lady pirate wouldn't be so scary as a big man pirate. Just maybe this pirate would let her work on the ship so she could get some treasures for her mama.
Well, of course, things just aren't that easy are they? This lady pirate had other ideas.
"Well there matey, just what is your name? And what are you doin' on board me ship? I don't take kindly to stowaways I'll have you know."
Well, Marlee was quick to think and said, "My name is Mark and I want to work on this ship and get treasures for my mama." (Oops, she might have said too much in my way of thinking.) Then Marlee said, "What is your name? I have told you mine?"
Well I don't know about you, but I don't think I would have talked so much to a scary pirate," Grandma Lu said.
"Oh that lady pirate did laugh out loud then. She said, "Well, now aren't ye just a bit high and mighty with ye questions? I know exactly what I am going to do with ye, little man."
Oh then Marlee or better known as Mark was scared. What was this lady pirate going to do?
Marlee had no choice but to follow her up the slippery stairs. She was taken to the poop deck.
All the children and even some of the grown ups laughed when Grandma Lu said the poop deck.

She immediately laughed herself and said, "The poop deck is the highest and furthest away from the rest of the sailors. She had plans for this little stowaway. She knew exactly who this little stowaway was. There were men in those days called, "runners." They were messengers that would run with messages for a little bit of money. There were no telephones or telegraphs either. These runners had made it to the docks the day the pirate ship had sailed and told of the little stowaway on board ship. The little one's mama had gotten terribly sick, so now she had no family left but an old grandma that didn't know where Marlee was. The lady pirate, whose name was Lady Kathleen, had a plan.
She needed to get this ship to the little island that she had made her home when she needed a rest from sailing. She also knew that her stowaway wasn't a boy but was really a little girl. Lady Kathleen's home on the island was very lonely. Her home was a huge palace. She had many servants that were her old retired pirates. But she wanted young people. She wanted to laugh again. It seemed like she hadn't laughed for a very long time. She would love some company when she docked the ship in between voyages. Oh her mind was so busy! She thought, "I could even adopt this little twinkie. I always wanted some children, but I was never blessed to have any of my own. She is a cutie. I will dress her up and she will be the princess of my island. Oh what fun it will be. She will be my heiress and when I am gone she will be the richest woman on the sea!"
 This lady sounds like she owns the ship! Surely ladies didn't own these big pirate ships, did they? She calls herself Lady Kathleen? Well, that sounds like royalty to me. Well, this is something to think about isn't it?