Sallie Hicks, prone to trouble caused by her right index finger, burns it in hot jam despite warnings. As punishment, she sits in the hallway, contemplating her great-grandmother's portrait. Sallie imagines the portrait speaking to her, sharing a story of her grandmother's childhood mischief and a mother's tears. Awakening from her dream, Sallie tearfully promises her mother to be good and her unruly right index finger no longer causes trouble.