Marrah heard the air in the bus brakes as she shoveled the rest of her breakfast into her mouth.

"You just missed the bus!” Marrah’s mother yelled. “Why can’t you ever be on time?”

“I’m sorry, Mom,” Marrah sighed. She ran upstairs to her room so she could get her backpack, knowing she needed to hurry because her mother would have to take her to school.

“Let’s go, Marrah!” Her mother called from downstairs. “You don’t want to be late to school too!”

Frantic now, Marrah lifted her sheets to look under them before dropping to her knees in front of her bed. She pushed mounds of clothes out of the way as she continued to search for her backpack.

“Marrah!” Her mother called again and she could hear the impatience in her voice downstairs. She ran out of her room and leaned over the rail.

“I can’t find my backpack!” She cried out.

“You mean this one?” Her mother pulled the bag from the floor beside her.

“Oh,” she replied, her shoulders sagging as she walked down the stairs.

“Let’s go to school, Marrah.” Her mother said with a small smile on her face as they walked out the door.

If you do NOT want to be like Marrah, then you should be ____________.