Sam woke up and sat up in bed. Sunlight made soft stripes on his wall. On his chair lay a little basket with a blue bow. “Oh!” said Sam.
In the kitchen, Mom poured warm milk. Dad cut toast. The air smelled sweet, like lemon cake.
“Today is Easter,” Mom said.
“Easter!” Sam said. “Hop hop!”
A tiny bell went “ting-ting” from the window. Sam ran over. On the sill sat a small chocolate egg, wrapped in gold. It was not there before. Sam's eyes went wide.
“Magic?” Sam asked.
“Maybe,” Dad said, and he winked.
Sam put on his shoes. Outside, the yard was bright. Green grass. Pink flowers. The sky was a big blue bowl.
“Ready?” Mom said.
“Ready!” said Sam.
They walked slow. Sam held his basket. He looked under a pot. “Tap-tap.” No egg.
He looked by the tree. “Rustle-rustle.” A red egg! Sam clapped. “Yay!”
By the slide: “Boing!” A spot of shiny foil peeked out. Sam picked up a purple egg. He giggled.
Then he saw a small egg stuck in a bush. “Uh-oh,” Sam said. His hand was too big.
Mom crouched down. “Soft hands,” she said. “I will help.” She gently moved the leaves. “Plop!” The egg fell into Sam's basket.
Soon the basket was full: blue, green, gold, and speckled eggs. They sat on a blanket and shared toast and eggs. Sam hummed, “La-la-la.”
“Happy Easter,” Sam said.
Kind hands and shared joy make bright days even brighter.
