My brother's big day had finally come. John had waited for this day all year. It was his baptism day. He was so excited. In fact, we all were excited. We were hurrying about getting dressed in our Sunday best in preparation for John's baptism.

As I was straightening my tie, I could smell my mom's hot, juicy, scrumptious pot roast and hot wheat bread baking in the kitchen. I watched my sisters giggle and twirl in their frilly dresses. Then I played with our dog, Buddy. He was a one-year-old puppy who was fun loving and loyal. His coat was a brindle color. He likes to get into mischief, like nosing around in the garbage or chewing on our shoes and toys.

We received a phone call giving us the report that the baptismal font was warm and ready and our relatives and friends were beginning to arrive. Chocolate chip cookies, fudge brownies and strawberry-banana punch were placed on the table for the reception afterwards. Everything and everyone was in place and ready to go, except us.

My dad yelled, "Kids, get in the car, we're running late!" We marched out to our green mini-van and climbed in. I watched my parents step out of the house, looking attractive in their nicest attire. My mom opened the car door and right away I could smell the beautiful fragrance of her sweet lilac perfume. Suddenly, I heard my mom yell, "Oh no! I locked the keys in the house!" My dad rapidly checked the windows in front of the house. They were locked tight. Then my mom moved quickly around the house to check the locks on the back door and windows. They were locked, too. Then my dad called to the neighbors for help. They discussed the problem and I realized that Buddy was our only hope of unlocking the window latches. Buddy had never done that before. To get Buddy's attention my parents and neighbor tapped on the cold window. Buddy leaped onto the couch with excitement and then jumped off and tossed his squeaky ball toy in the air, ready to play. Then he looked back at them and returned to the couch with a bound. He pressed his cold, wet nose on the window, panting. Then he raised his paw and scratched the window with his sharp claws and whimpered. Every stroke of his paw was a near miss on the latch. Then he finally stepped down on the steel latch. They heard the sound of a click. The window was now unlocked!

My mom asked me to crawl inside and get the keys. My parents lifted me up so I could slip in the open window, get the keys and unlock the front door. We drove to John's baptism and had a wonderful time. Buddy had saved the day!