Max was four. He wore his red socks. He had a small note pad. He liked to spot clues.
Today was Snack Time. Mom put a blue bowl on the table. “Apple slices,” she said.
Max blinked. The bowl was empty.
Max smiled. “A case!” he said.
Mom sat close. “A tiny case,” she said, and she smiled too.
Max looked at the table. He saw one crumb. He saw a little wet dot. He saw a thin line, like a drip.
“Hmm,” said Max. “We look.”
You can help Max. What do you see?
Is it a crumb trail? Is it a drip trail?
Max followed the thin line on the table. It went to the floor. Then to the rug. Then to the toy box.
Max knelt down. “Hello, clues,” he said.
He saw a small green bit near the toy box. It looked like apple peel.
Max held it up. “Apple!” he said.
Dad came in. “What is up?” he said.
“The apples are gone,” said Max. “We find who took them.”
Dad nodded. “Detective Max. Good work.”
Max looked at the rug. He saw two small paw prints. They were soft and dusty.
“Who has paws?” asked Max.
You can help Max. Who has paws in the house?
Max turned his head. A brown dog sat by the door. It was Coco. Coco's tail went thump, thump.
Coco licked her lips. “Slurp,” went Coco.
Max giggled. “Coco, you ate my snack,” he said.
Mom spoke in a calm voice. “Coco loves apples. But she must wait.”
Dad pointed. “Look in Coco's bed,” he said.
Max walked to Coco's bed. There was a little cloth. Under it sat the blue bowl. Inside were apple slices. Not all gone. Just moved.
Coco gave a small “woof,” like “sorry.”
Max patted Coco. “It is okay,” he said. “We share. We do it nice.”
Mom washed the bowl. She put apple slices on three plates. One for Max. One for Mom and Dad. One small plate for Coco.
Max sat down. He took a bite. “Crunch,” he said, and he smiled.
He wrote on his note pad: “Clue: drip. Clue: paw. Find: bowl in bed.”
Then he said, “Case closed!”
Moral: When we look, ask, and share, small problems turn into happy play.
