One sunny afternoon in Atlanta, Mrs. Jenkins was enjoying her lemonade on the porch when she heard a knock at the door. She opened it to find two wide-eyed kids, Trinity and Tyler, holding a crumpled list.
“Lady,” Trinity said seriously, “we are on a scavenger hunt, and we still need a ‘friendly neighbor’s secret item.’”
Mrs. Jenkins smiled, curious. “A secret item? What kind of secret item?”
Tyler chimed in, “It’s something that only a really nice neighbor can give. It has to be unusual but nice.”
Mrs. Jenkins thought for a moment. “Well, I do have some freshly baked cookies and a jar of my homemade lemonade.”
“That’s nice,” Trinity said, “but we already have snacks covered.”
Mrs. Jenkins leaned closer and whispered, “How about a story?”
Tyler’s eyes lit up. “A story! That’s perfect! But it has to be funny or mysterious.”
Mrs. Jenkins invited them inside and told a tale about the time her cat tried to race a squirrel and ended up stuck in a tree wearing a lampshade like a hat.
The kids giggled so hard they nearly fell over.
“Okay,” Trinity declared, “your story is definitely our secret item.”
As they ran off to continue their hunt, Mrs. Jenkins called after them, “Remember, the best treasures aren’t always things you can hold!”
Tyler shouted back, “Got it! Thanks for the best secret item ever!”
And Mrs. Jenkins sat back down, feeling like the luckiest neighbor on the block.
