Worst Day Ever

Mandy and Sarah begin the morning thrilled about seeing Starlights on Ice that evening. Mandy wears her favorite sweater for the occasion and plans to meet Sarah after marching-band tryouts so they can catch the bus from Whit's End. The day seems as though it will last forever, but it quickly becomes memorable for every wrong reason.

Sarah's watch has stopped, causing both girls to mistake the time. Mandy reaches class late and receives an hour of detention under a new rule with no exceptions. Then she discovers that the girls accidentally exchanged folders when they collided in the hall. Sarah has Mandy's book report, and Mr. Hoobler refuses to accept it after the deadline. He follows the bad news with a surprise quiz.

At lunch, Mandy and Sarah try to reconstruct how they confused their belongings. Alex joins the demonstration, and he and Mandy strike their heads together as everyone bends to collect the scattered papers. Mandy cuts and swells her lip. When she tries to get one piece of ice, the cafeteria machine runs out of control and floods the floor. The last slice of pizza is gone by the time the mess is cleared, leaving only broccoli casserole.

Mandy attempts her French horn audition despite the injured lip. Her performance is so distorted that Alex mistakes the national anthem for a Christmas song, and the band director postpones her tryout until Monday. Sarah tries to find encouraging lessons in each mishap, but none of them makes Mandy feel better.

A faulty drinking fountain then soaks Mandy's hair. She and Sarah enter the restroom to dry it, but cheap toilet paper crumbles in her hair, a stall door jams, and Mandy steps into the toilet while trying to climb over the partition. She arrives late to detention and receives another detention for the following day.

When other punished students complain about unfair rules, they make Mandy their unwilling spokesperson. Mr. Hoobler sees her wringing water from a sock while the group chants about oppression and takes her to the principal. The confusion earns Mandy an entire additional week of detention.

Hurrying to Whit's End afterward, the friends take a shortcut. Mandy rides into a pothole, injures her wrist, covers herself in mud, and discovers a flat tire. Alex misremembers a Sunday-school lesson and suggests that so many bad events must be punishment for evil in Mandy's life. He and Sarah begin searching for some forgotten disobedience that could explain her suffering.

Connie gives Mandy ice for her wrist and a free mint-chocolate shake to brighten her day. While Alex dramatizes his role in the lunchtime collision, he knocks the shake onto Mandy's favorite sweater and shatters the glass. Connie helps clean the stain and reminds Mandy that God can work through every circumstance, encouraging her to trust Him even on a miserable day.

Then Sarah arrives with news that Starlights on Ice has been canceled because the skaters are on strike. Mandy finally declares it the worst day ever and walks home. Along the way, a small dog steals her backpack and drags her through its owner's rose bushes. The owner blames Mandy for the damage, and automatic sprinklers soak her before she can leave.

At home, Mandy learns that her family ordered Thai food because they expected her to be away, even though she dislikes it. The only alternative is the same broccoli casserole she avoided at lunch. Hungry, muddy, stained, wet, bruised, and discouraged, she goes to bed early in hopes of ending the day as quickly as possible.

Her mother brings her favorite soup and refuses to offer a shallow bright side. Bad days happen to everyone, she explains. They do not prove that God has stopped loving someone, that every hardship is punishment, or that life will remain terrible forever. Morning will bring a new day, which may be better. Mandy receives that simple comfort and eats her soup. When she asks where her cat Fluffyface is, her mother postpones the subject until tomorrow, leaving Mandy to rest before facing whatever the next day contains.