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Memorial Day
 Operation Lonely Soldier

Operation Lonely Soldier
Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   grades 4 to 6
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   3.54

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    re-read, reading, writing, security, unit, settled, crutch, officer, adequate, fell, guys, possible, perhaps, laying, lines, thoughtful
     content words:    Operation Lonely Soldier

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Operation Lonely Soldier
By Mary Lynn Bushong 		  
1     Grace leaned on her elbow crutches as she swung her legs forward, awkwardly stepping to a rhythm she had worked out for herself. The mailbox wasn't far from the house, but it took her a while to get there, check it, and get back. She didn't mind; she figured it was good for her to get moving.
 
2     The mail was put in a bag she hung from the side of the crutch. She didn't look at the envelopes as she put them into it. It gave her more to look forward to as she headed back to the house.
 
3     "Did I get anything?" asked her little brother Tyler. He tried to reach into the bag to check for himself.
 
4     "Hands off!" growled Grace as she swung her body away from him. "You know I get first peek."
 
5     Once inside, Grace settled herself in a chair. She unhooked the bag before laying the crutches on the floor next to her. It looked like there was one magazine, several bills, and two letters. She quickly checked the addresses.
 
6     "Tyler," said Grace, "you got a letter from Ethan!"
 
7     Tyler slid past in his stocking feet and snatched the letter from his sister's fingers! Then the pounding of his feet told her that he'd gone to his room to read it.
 
8     The other letter was addressed to her. It was also from Ethan. She was so proud of her big brother; she sometimes thought she might burst.
 
9     She scanned the lines and imagined him writing the words she was reading. She always felt like she'd had a brief glimpse into his world when she was done. A line he added near the end troubled her.

Paragraphs 10 to 18:
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