One late afternoon, Mia found something new at the bottom of the old apple tree. It was a little blue door, no bigger than a lunchbox, with a tiny golden handle.
"I wonder who lives here?" said Mia. So she knelt down in the soft grass and gave a gentle knock. Tap, tap, tap.
The little door creaked open. Out peeked a plump brown beetle wearing a leaf for a hat. "Hello!" it buzzed. "Would you like to see the wondering path?"
Mia felt her tummy flutter with excitement. "Yes, please," she whispered.
The beetle led her down a tiny hallway lit by glowing mushrooms. "I wonder where it goes," said Mia, and she tiptoed on. Pat, pat, pat went her feet.
The path opened into a cozy round room under the roots. Little lanterns swayed like fireflies. A dozen sleepy beetles were tucking themselves into acorn-cap beds.
"I wonder why it's so quiet," Mia said softly.
"Because," yawned the beetle, "it is nearly nap time for everyone. But we always thank the ones who come to wonder." It gave Mia a smooth pebble that shimmered like the moon.
Mia held the pebble close. "Thank you," she whispered. Then she followed the mushroom lights back up the tiny hallway, out through the little blue door, into the soft early evening light.
Dad was waiting on the porch with two cups of warm milk. "There you are," he said. "What did you find?"
Mia opened her hand and showed him the shimmery pebble. "A wondering path," she said. "And it was full of good things."
That night, Mia set the pebble on the windowsill where it caught the moonlight. She thought about the beetle in its leaf hat, the glowing mushrooms, the little acorn beds.
"I wonder what I'll find tomorrow," she murmured, snuggling deep into her blankets.
Outside, the apple tree rustled softly, keeping its little blue door safe until morning. And Mia's eyes grew heavy, and heavier, until the wondering carried her gently off to sleep.