Brooklyn was home to all kinds of sounds. Kim and Kurt were used to lots of them. There were the sounds of traffic. Cars and trucks and buses went zipping by all the time, honking their horns and playing loud music on their sound systems. There were also the sounds of voices—people shouting and chatting and singing. There were dogs barking and even the sounds of tools that people used as part of their jobs—like a jackhammer digging a hole in the street.

This day, Kim and Kurt were soaking up the sounds in Drummer’s Grove with Kim's pals, Lynn and Sheryl. Drummer’s Grove is a place in Prospect Park where people gather to play drums. Some of them play steel drums. Some play bongo drums. Some of them hit the drums with sticks. Some of them slap the drums with their bare hands.

Kurt liked the sounds in Drummer’s Grove. He jumped up and down and did a dance. Kim, Lynn, and Sheryl all smiled.

“Is drumming a job?” Kurt asked Kim.

“It is for some people,” Kim said. “But here I think they drum just for fun.”

“I can see why,” Kurt said. “It looks like a lot of fun!”

“Would you like to take a shot at it?” Lynn asked.

“Do you think they would let me play?” asked Kurt.

“You won't know unless you ask,” said Kim. “All they can say is no.”

Kurt jumped at the chance. He went up to a drummer, pointed at his drum and said, “Would you mind if I took a turn to play?”

The drummer was kind and let Kurt have a chance. Kurt pounded on the drum and tapped his foot like he was going wild! He did his best to keep up with the rest of the drummers. He liked drumming. He got the hang of it fast. But soon he felt pain in his hands from pounding so much.

“Thanks,” Kurt told the man as he gave him back the drum, “but you had better take the drum back. I’s hard my hands.”

“If you do it a lot, your hands will get used to it,” the drummer told him.

Kurt went back to where Kim, Lynn, and Sheryl were standing.

“You are a good drummer,” Lynn told him.

“Tell Kim to get you a drum as a gift after she gets a job!” said Sheryl.

“If we don’t get going soon, I'll never find a job!” said Kim. “Let's go, Kurt.”

“Good luck with your job hunt,” Lynn said.

“See you later!” Kim said. She waved to Lynn and Sheryl. Kurt waved to the drummers.