The Map in the Attic

It was raining, and Grandpa had sent Ana and her cousin Kai up to the attic to look for the old board games. Instead, behind a box of curtains, they found a rolled-up piece of paper tied with string.

Kai untied it. It was a map, drawn in pencil and faded blue crayon. At the top, in wobbly writing, it said: Secret Treasure Map, by Tomas, age eight.

"Tomas is Grandpa's name!" said Ana.

The map showed a house, a big tree and a garden shed. In the corner was a star with four points labeled N, E, S and W. At the bottom were instructions: Start at the back door. Walk ten steps north to the big tree. Turn east. Walk eight steps. Dig under the flat stone.

They ran downstairs. Grandpa looked at the map for a long time, then smiled. "I'd forgotten all about that," he said. "I buried something when I was your age. I wonder if it's still there."

"What did you bury?" asked Kai.

"I can't remember," said Grandpa. "Isn't that exciting?"

The rain had stopped. Grandpa fetched a small compass from the drawer. "First, a lesson," he said. "The needle always points north. Once you know where north is, you can find the other directions. If you face north, east is on your right, west is on your left, and south is behind you."

"Never Eat Soggy Waffles," said Ana. "That's how we remember them at school. North, east, south, west, going around clockwise."

They stood at the back door. Kai held the compass flat. The needle wobbled, then settled. "North is that way," he said, pointing at the big oak tree.

Ana counted ten steps. They landed right beside the tree. "It worked!" she said.

Then she turned to her right, to face east, and counted eight steps. She ended up in the middle of the vegetable patch, standing on a cabbage. There was no flat stone anywhere.

"Hmm," said Kai. "Something's wrong."

Grandpa chuckled. "Where did you start counting from?"

"From the back door," said Ana. "Then I turned at the tree."

"Ah," said Grandpa. "That oak was much smaller when I was eight. Its trunk has grown much wider since then. And I think I used to walk all the way around it, to the far side, before I turned east."

Ana walked around to the far side of the trunk and counted eight steps east again. This time she ended up by the old garden wall, next to a flat gray stone covered in moss.

Kai and Ana lifted the stone together. Underneath, in the damp soil, was a rusty tin box. Inside, wrapped in a plastic bag, was a marble, a toy soldier, a shiny button, and a note: Hello, whoever finds this. I hope you are having a good day. Love, Tomas.

Grandpa read the note and laughed until his eyes were wet. "I was right," he said. "We are having a good day."

That evening, Ana and Kai drew their own map, buried their own box under the same stone and hid the map in the attic. The note inside said: Hello, whoever finds this. Grandpa Tomas taught us to use a compass. Always check which side of the tree to start from.

⭐ The End ⭐