Etta Jo's Doll - Chapter 2 - The Flight to Boston - Etta Jo leaves a shelter for New Hampshire

In our story, Etta Jo lives on a Caribbean island that was devastated a few months ago when the high winds and torrential rains caused by Hurricane Maria swept across the landscape.  Etta Jo’s home, where she lived with her mother, and the school, where she attended second grade, were destroyed.  

A family in Laconia, who annually vacationed on the island and knew her mother, offered to provide a home for Etta Jo for a few months while the community is being rebuilt.

Etta Jo is 8 years old and has never traveled off the island or experienced snow or the New England traditions of Thanksgiving and Christmas. Over the next seven weeks the Laconia Daily Sun will feature, through a series of stories, the adventures of Etta Jo that will allow children to understand how a child views their world and culture through a different lens.

These stories, fictionalized and based on an imagined situation, can be read to children ages 5  to 9 years old  or read by children.  

Children can write letters to Etta Jo c/o The Laconia Daily Sun, 1127 Union Ave. #1, Laconia, NH 03246 or email news@laconiadailysun.com and their letters will be answered.

By ELIZABETH HOWARD

When they arrived at the airport, Joe helped Etta Jo out of the car. They walked together into the airport and stood in line to collect Etta Jo’s plane ticket. 

When it was their turn, the woman at the counter handed Etta Jo her ticket and then she stepped out and gently put something around her neck. On it was her name, her mother’s telephone number and the name of the family where she was staying in New Hampshire.

The attendant gave Etta Jo a hug and said, “The flight attendant will come and put you on the plane. She will stay with you until someone meets you when the plane lands in Boston.”

Just then there was a loud announcement that could be heard throughout the airport:

“For those passengers traveling to Boston, Massachusetts, the plane is now boarding at Gate Number 4.”

Joe hugged Etta Jo good-bye and walked with her up to the gate. The flight attendant was waiting and led her onto the plane.

Etta Jo loved the big leather seat that was next to the window. She could look out across the long wing of the plane. The flight attendant fastened her seatbelt, pulled it tight and handed her a coloring book, crayons and a bag with some games and puzzles.

Soon everyone was boarding the plane and pushing bags into the overhead compartments.

A woman sat next to Etta Jo and said: “My name is Flo, what is your name?”

Etta Jo felt sad, but having someone from the island sitting next to her made her feel better. The engines began to hum and then the humming got louder and louder before the plane began to taxi down the runway. Flo reached over the seat and took Etta Jo’s hand, just as the plane began to ascend into the sky.

When Etta Jo looked through the window now she could the island where she lived, surrounded by turquoise blue-green ocean. It looked very small. She could see clouds so large they looked like pillows made from puffs of cotton. She closed her eyes and rested her head against the seat. How would she describe this to her mother and her friends at home? How she wished she had her doll Charlotte with her.

Etta Jo's island was surrounded by turquoise-blue water. (Courtesy photo)

Etta Jo's arrived with only a small satchel.