Town Admits Lack of Bell at Blind School a Form of Entertainment
Walnut Grove, Minn.-In a shocking revelation, residents of Walnut Grove admit that the lack of alert system at the blind school provides a source of entertainment.
“The first time it hit me that it could be fun to sneak up on blind people was that time I dropped Mary off at the blind school in Winoka,” Charles Ingalls admits. “I brought Mary in and Adam was in the middle of teaching a lesson, but he came right over to hug and kiss Mary. He didn’t even know I was there, so of course he behaved like I wasn’t there. Once I spoke, he quickly apologized. When I accepted his apology and said it was alright, I meant it. I really got a buzz from knowing that he didn’t know I was there and wondered what other things I could witness next.”
When the blind school relocated to Walnut Grove, amenities such as ostentatious plaques were added while something as simple as a small bell on the door remained ignored.
“I told Harriet I thought a bell could be useful,” Nels Oleson, proprietor of Oleson’s Mercantile and husband of Harriet, benefactor of the blind school. “But there was only so much money we could give at the time, and the plaque Harriet picked was so large, so expensive. I thought maybe a smaller plaque would do, that way we could have both. But Harriet wouldn’t hear of it.”
“It’s really a shame,” Nels added while Charles, who remained within ear shot, shook his head in a jocular manner and laughed.
Caroline Ingalls has also experienced entering the blind school without warning and enjoyed it. “When Charles told me how fun it was, well, I just didn’t believe such a thing could be,” Caroline tells us. “Then I walked in to grab Adam so we could leave for our trip, and he and Mary were having this tender moment that felt pretty private. It was then that I understood what Charles meant. It was pretty fun, and it always leaves me wondering what I’ll walk in on next time I arrive. As long as Hester Sue isn’t around, no one knows when someone walks through that door.”
Residents of the blind school are oblivious to the laughs they provide the town.
“Sure, people have pointed out that a bell could be useful,” Adam Kendall informs The Prairie Review. “It’s just that we have so little money, and what could possibly go wrong? There’s nothing safer than this school, where I am confident that no tragedies will ever take place, even in a town like Walnut Grove.”