Milo is four. He wears a blue cap. He is a tiny detective.
In the kitchen, Mom says, “My red spoon is gone. Oh!”
Milo pats his pocket. “I can find it,” he says. “This is a soft case.”
He looks at the table. Crumbs go “crik-crik.” A cup goes “clink.” No red spoon.
Milo asks, “Was it here?”
Mom says, “Yes, by my bowl.”
Milo sees a wet dot trail on the floor. “Drip, drip,” goes the sink. Milo follows the dots. Hop, hop.
He stops by the dog bowl. “Slurp-slurp,” goes Bongo the dog. Bongo wags. No spoon.
Milo looks again. A red thing peeks from under a towel. “Aha!” says Milo.
He lifts the towel. “Flip!” It is a red spoon… but it is the toy spoon from Milo's play set.
Milo giggles. “Wrong spoon,” he says.
He looks for more clues. He sees small white marks on the floor. “Tap-tap,” go little feet.
Milo follows the marks to the fridge. He points. “Toc-toc,” he knocks.
From behind the fridge, a tiny “meep!” pops out. It is Nini the cat. She has a shiny red spoon in her mouth.
Mom laughs. “Silly Nini.” Milo says, “Drop, please.”
“Plop!” The spoon falls into Milo's hands.
Milo gives it to Mom. She hugs him. “Good work, Detective Milo.”
Moral: When we look, ask, and help, small mysteries are easy to solve.
