Tomas’s Secret in the Attic
Tomas and a friend discover a hidden door in the attic. What waits behind it?
It was raining on the first day of the holidays. Tomas was bored. ‘Why don’t we explore the attic?’ suggested Jamal the zebra. They fetched a torch and climbed the creaky ladder.
The attic was full of old boxes and trunks and dust. A single round window let in a grey light. Tomas sneezed. Jamal giggled. They opened box after box, finding old hats, curtains and a lamp.
‘Wait,’ said Tomas. He tapped the wall behind a tall bookcase. It sounded hollow. He pushed the bookcase aside. There, hidden in the wood, was a tiny, round door, no bigger than a tea tray.
Jamal looked at Tomas. Tomas looked at Jamal. ‘Ready?’ they whispered. Tomas turned the tiny brass handle. The door creaked open slowly. A cool breath of air drifted out, smelling of lavender and old paper.
Inside was a little hidden room. In the middle sat a dusty wooden box. On the lid, in faded gold letters, was a label: ‘For whoever finds this.’ Tomas’s heart thumped. He lifted the lid.
Inside, there was a violin and a song written on yellow paper. And a letter from Great-Aunt. ‘Dear finder,’ it said. ‘I hid these here when I was your age. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did. Please remember to hide something for the next child.’
Tomas and Jamal read the letter again and again. Then they ran downstairs to show Layla the bear. Layla smiled with tears in her eyes. ‘I remember that room,’ she said. ‘I put that box there long ago.’
That evening, Tomas wrote a letter of his own. He popped it in the box with a favourite toy, and placed it back behind the bookcase. ‘For whoever finds this,’ he wrote, ‘be curious. And be kind.’
The little lesson
The things people leave for us can teach us something about who they were, and who we can be.
Let’s talk about it
- Would you open the door? Why or why not?
- What would you put in a box for people in the future?
Finish stories to collect Tomas as a sticker in your Sticker Book.
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Who Sent Zara the Parcel?
A parcel arrives with no name and no address, and a faint noise inside.
Kira and the Hidden Door
Kira and a friend discover a hidden door in the attic. What waits behind it?
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