Patch the Hiccupping Pumpkin

In a big pumpkin patch, surrounded by tall corn stalks, lived a special pumpkin named Patch. Patch was round and orange like all the other pumpkins, but he had one very loud difference. *HIC!* went Patch. Then *HICCUP!* And sometimes even *HIC-HIC-HIC!* Patch had the biggest, loudest hiccups in the whole patch! They were so loud they made the corn stalks shake and the birds fly away. The other pumpkins would sigh. "Patch, you're so noisy!" they complained. Poor Patch felt embarrassed. He tried holding his breath to stop the hiccups. *Hold... hold... hold...* *HIC-HIC-HICCUP!* Nope, that didn't work. He tried thinking quiet thoughts. *Shhh... be quiet...* *HIC!* Still didn't work. One sunny October morning, Farmer Joe came walking through the patch with his big wagon. "Time to pick the best pumpkins for Halloween jack-o'-lanterns!" he announced cheerfully. Patch got nervous. *HIC!* What if Farmer Joe didn't want a noisy pumpkin? Farmer Joe picked the biggest pumpkins. *Thump!* into the wagon they went. He picked the roundest pumpkins. *Thump! Thump!* When he reached Patch, something happened. *HICCUP!* went Patch, so loud that a nearby scarecrow's hat fell off! Farmer Joe's eyes widened, then he broke into a big grin. "Well I'll be! A hiccupping pumpkin! You're going to be the most special jack-o'-lantern ever!" He carefully lifted Patch into the wagon. *HIC!* went Patch all the way to the farmhouse. Patch sat proudly on the front porch as a real jack-o'-lantern, his candle glowing warmly inside. "Perfect!" said Farmer Joe. "You're ready for Halloween!" But as evening came, Patch started to worry again. Through the window, he could see children getting ready in their costumes. "What if they think I'm too loud?" Patch worried. "What if I scare them away with my hiccups?" *Hic...* went Patch quietly, trying to keep his hiccups small. Soon, darkness fell and Halloween began! *Pitter-patter, pitter-patter* - little feet in costumes came down the street. The first group approached: a tiny dinosaur, a sparkly fairy, and a brave knight. *Knock-knock-knock!* they went on the door. "Trick or treat!" they called out. Patch tried his hardest to be quiet. *Hold it in... hold it in...* But then - *HICCUP!* The children froze. They looked around with wide eyes. "What was that?" whispered the fairy. *HIC-HIC!* went Patch, his candle flickering. "Look!" pointed the dinosaur. "The pumpkin is making sounds!" Instead of running away, all three children crept closer. "Is he... hiccupping?" asked the knight. *HICCUP!* answered Patch. Suddenly, the fairy started giggling. Then the dinosaur. Then the knight. "He IS hiccupping!" they laughed. "That's the funniest thing ever!" *HIC!* went Patch, and they giggled even more. Word spread quickly. *Running footsteps!* More costumed children came rushing over. A pirate ran up. "Where's the hiccupping pumpkin?" A princess hurried over. "I want to hear him!" A superhero zoomed in. "This I've got to see!" Soon, Patch had a whole audience! There were witches and ghosts, cowboys and astronauts, all gathered around his porch. *HICCUP!* went Patch. "Again! Again!" cheered the children. *HIC-HIC-HICCUP!* The crowd erupted in laughter and applause. *Clap, clap, clap!* "You're the best pumpkin ever!" called out a little witch. "Can you do a really big one?" asked a tiny robot. Patch felt a enormous hiccup building up. This was going to be his biggest one yet! *HIIIIIICCCCCUP!* The sound was so loud it echoed down the whole street! All the children cheered and jumped up and down. "WOW!" they all shouted. All evening long, children came from blocks away to see the amazing hiccupping jack-o'-lantern. They would get their candy from Farmer Joe, then gather around Patch for a special hiccup show. *HIC!* *HICCUP!* *HIC-HIC-HIC!* Each hiccup brought more giggles and cheers. "You're famous!" the children told him. "You're the coolest pumpkin in town!" "We'll never forget the hiccupping jack-o'-lantern!" By the end of Halloween night, Patch felt amazing. His hiccups weren't embarrassing at all - they were his special talent! "I make children laugh!" thought Patch proudly. *HIC!* From that Halloween on, everyone in the neighborhood talked about Patch. Children would ask their parents all year long, "When can we visit the hiccupping pumpkin again?" And Patch learned the most wonderful lesson: the thing that made him different was exactly what made him special. *HICCUP!* went Patch happily, his light shining brighter than any other jack-o'-lantern on the street. The End