“What will Morgan say?” said Annie. “We’ve never forgotten a mission before! And this one was the most important we’ve ever had! To help save Merlin!” Annie was near tears.
“Wait, wait. Calm down,” said Jack. “Let’s think a minute. Maybe we actually found a secret of happiness. Maybe we just don’t know we found it.”
“You mean, like—were we extra happy at any time?” asked Annie.
“Yeah, sort of,” said Jack. “Were we?”
“I don’t know, were you?” said Annie.
“I think a few times …,” said Jack.
“Like when?” said Annie.
“Like when we were crossing the Great Bridge with Basho, I felt sort of happy then,” said Jack.
“Me too,” said Annie. “And I was pretty happy eating sushi.”
“Yeah, but I got scared when I saw the samurai watching me,” said Jack.
“What about the sumo-wrestling match?” asked Annie.
“That was fun,” said Jack. “But I don’t know if it really made me happy.”
“Riding the dragon and putting out the fire?” said Annie.
“That was great,” said Jack. “But I was too worried about saving the city to be happy.”
“Making up poems for the samurai?” said Annie.
“Too nervous,” said Jack.
“Well, when were you purely happy?” said Annie.
“I think it was when …” Jack stopped. He felt silly saying what he was about to say.
“Go ahead,” said Annie.
“I think it was when I was lying on the mat in Basho’s house,” said Jack, “and I touched that little patch of moonlight on the floor and I listened to the banana leaves in the wind.”
“Oh, yes!” said Annie. “Before we fell asleep, and I heard the cricket and I felt like I was a cricket myself going to sleep in a cozy place.”
“Yeah, like that,” said Jack.
“It’s like what Basho said about finding beauty in the small things of nature,” said Annie, “like his poem about that frog splashing in the water.”
“I think that’s it!” said Jack. “A secret of happiness is paying really close attention to the small things in nature.”
“Wow,” said Annie. “I think that’s a great secret to share with Merlin.”
“It is,” said Jack, “and Basho’s poem will help Merlin understand.”
“Right,” said Annie.
“Let’s go,” said Jack.
Annie climbed down the rope ladder. Jack put his pack on his back and followed her.
As Jack and Annie started through the chilly woods together, Jack noticed things he hadn’t seen before. He saw tiny blue wild-flowers sprouting up from the winter-weary ground.
He saw fresh anthills in the dirt.
He saw leaf buds on twigs and green moss on a rock, bright in the March sunlight.
“I feel like I’m seeing spring for the first time,” said Jack.
“Me too,” said Annie.
“Not just for the first time this year,” said Jack. “But for the first time in my whole life.”
“Me too,” said Annie.
Jack felt happy, really happy, as he and Annie headed for home in the sparkling morning light.
The poet Basho was born in Japan in 1644. His family wanted him to grow up to be a samurai. But when he was a young man, he decided to write poetry instead.
Basho was poor and unknown for many years. Gradually, though, people started to read his poetry and, over time, he became very famous! His poetry fans built him a small house near the river Sumida. A student gave him a banana tree—basho, in Japanese—to plant in his yard. In 1682, Basho’s house was destroyed by a fire that swept through Edo. (Edo was often in danger from fires because the buildings were made of wood. As mentioned in this story, a terrible fire in 1657 had burned nearly all the city!)
A new house was built for Basho, but he did not live there for long. In 1684, he began the first of his journeys around Japan. Basho even wrote a book about his travels called The Narrow Road to the Deep North, in which he combined journal writing and poetry.
The form of poetry that Basho is famous for is called haiku (say HI-koo). It is the shortest form of Japanese poetry. Haiku poetry is written in plain speech and often describes humble things of everyday life. At first, haiku poetry seems very simple, but it can have a deep effect on a reader. A good haiku poem can waken your senses and help you see life in a fresh way—like it did for Jack, Annie, and the other people in this story.
Here’s a special preview of
Magic Tree House #38
(A Merlin Mission)
Monday with a Mad Genius
Available now!
Excerpt copyright © 2007 by Mary Pope Osborne.
Published by Random House Children's Books,
a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
Jack poured milk over his cereal. His stomach felt fluttery. It was Monday—the first day of a new school year.
Jack always felt nervous on the first day. What would his new teacher be like? Would his desk be close to a window? Would friends from last year be in his class again this year?
“Annie, hurry!” Jack’s mom called upstairs. “It’s fifteen minutes till eight. School starts in half an hour.”
Jack’s dad walked into the kitchen. “Are you sure you and Annie don’t want me to drive you?” he asked.
“No thanks, we don’t mind walking,” said Jack. Their school was only three blocks away.
“Annie, hurry!” their mom called again. “You’re going to be late!”
The back door banged open. Annie rushed into the kitchen. She was out of breath.
“Oh, I thought you were upstairs,” their mom said with surprise. “You were outside?”
“Yes!” said Annie, panting. “Just taking a quick walk.” She looked at Jack. Her eyes sparkled. “Hurry, Jack. We really should go now!”
“Okay, I’m coming!” said Jack. He leapt up from the table. He could tell Annie wasn’t talking about school. The tree house must be back! Finally!
Jack grabbed his backpack. Annie held the door open for him.
“No breakfast?” their mom asked.
“Too nervous to eat now, Mom,” said Jack.
“Have fun,” their mom said.
“Learn a lot,” said their dad.
“Don’t worry, we will!” said Annie.
Jack and Annie slipped out the door and walked quickly across their yard.
“It’s back!” said Annie.
“I figured it was!” said Jack.
“Morgan must want us to look for another secret of happiness to help Merlin,” said Annie.
“Yep!” said Jack. “Let’s run!”
Jack and Annie dashed up the sidewalk. They crossed the street and headed into the Frog Creek woods. They ran between the trees, through shadows and light, until they came to the tallest oak.
High in the tree was the magic tree house. The rope ladder was swaying in the chilly morning wind.
“How did you know it was here?” asked Jack, catching his breath.
“I woke up thinking about Teddy and Kathleen,” said Annie, “and I had this strange feeling.”
“Really?” said Jack. “Teddy! Kathleen!” he shouted up at the tree house.
Two young teenagers looked out the tree house window: a curly-haired boy with freckles and a big grin and a smiling girl with sea-blue eyes and dark wavy hair.
“Jack! Annie!” the girl said.
“Come up! Come up!” said the boy.
Jack and Annie hurried up the rope ladder. When they climbed inside the tree house, they threw their arms around their friends.
“Are we going to look for another secret of happiness?” said Annie. “To help Merlin?”
“Yes, and this time you will travel back to Florence, Italy, five hundred years ago,” said Teddy.
“Florence, Italy?” said Jack. “What’s there?”
“An ama
zing person who will help you,” said Kathleen.
“Who?” asked Annie. “Is this person magical?”
Teddy grinned. “Some people might say so,” he said. He reached into his cloak and pulled out a book. The cover showed a drawing of a man wearing a purple cloak and floppy blue cap. He had a long nose, bright, kind eyes with heavy eyebrows, and a flowing beard. The title said:
“Leonardo da Vinci!” said Jack. “Are you kidding?”
“I’ve heard of him,” said Annie.
“Who hasn’t?” said Jack. “He was an incredible genius!”
“This biography of Leonardo will help you on your mission,” said Teddy.
“And so will this rhyme from Morgan,” said Kathleen. She pulled a small piece of parchment paper from her cloak and gave it to Annie.
Annie read the words on the paper aloud.
To Jack and Annie of Frog Creek:
Though the question is quite simple,
Simple answers might be wrong.
If you want to know the right one,
Help the genius all day long,
Morning, noon, and afternoon,
Till the night bird sings its song.
“So to find the secret of happiness, we need to spend the whole day helping Leonardo da Vinci,” said Jack.
“Yes,” said Kathleen. Teddy nodded.
“I wish you could come, too,” said Annie.
“And help us,” said Jack.
“Never fear,” said Kathleen. “You will have the help of the great genius and the Wand of Dianthus.”
“Oh!” Annie said to Jack. “Did you bring our wand?”
“Of course,” said Jack. “I always carry it with me for safekeeping.” He reached into his backpack and pulled out a gleaming silver wand.
“The Wand of Dianthus,” Teddy said in a hushed voice.
The wand looked like the horn of a unicorn. It burned in Jack’s hand—with cold or warmth, he couldn’t tell which. He carefully put the wand back into his pack.
“Remember the three rules of the wand?” said Kathleen.
“Sure,” said Annie. “You can only use it for the good of others. You can only use it after you’ve tried your hardest. And you can only use it with a command of five words.”
“Excellent,” said Kathleen.
“Thanks,” said Annie. “Ready?” she asked Jack.
Jack nodded. “Bye, Teddy. Bye, Kathleen.”
“Good-bye,” said Teddy.
“And good luck,” said Kathleen.
Jack pointed at the cover of the book. “I wish we could go to Leonardo da Vinci!”
In the distance, the school bell started to ring, letting kids know that school would start in ten minutes. But in the Frog Creek woods, the wind started to blow.
The tree house started to spin.
It spun faster and faster.
Then everything was still.
Absolutely still.
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Magic Tree House® Books
#1: DINOSAURS BEFORE DARK
#2: THE KNIGHT AT DAWN
#3: MUMMIES IN THE MORNING
#4: PIRATES PAST NOON
#5: NIGHT OF THE NINJAS
#6: AFTERNOON ON THE AMAZON
#7: SUNSET OF THE SABERTOOTH
#8: MIDNIGHT ON THE MOON
#9: DOLPHINS AT DAYBREAK
#10: GHOST TOWN AT SUNDOWN
#11: LIONS AT LUNCHTIME
#12: POLAR BEARS PAST BEDTIME
#13: VACATION UNDER THE VOLCANO
#14: DAY OF THE DRAGON KING
#15: VIKING SHIPS AT SUNRISE
#16: HOUR OF THE OLYMPICS
#17: TONIGHT ON THE TITANIC
#18: BUFFALO BEFORE BREAKFAST
#19: TIGERS AT TWILIGHT
#20: DINGOES AT DINNERTIME
#21: CIVIL WAR ON SUNDAY
#22: REVOLUTIONARY WAR ON WEDNESDAY
#23: TWISTER ON TUESDAY
#24: EARTHQUAKE IN THE EARLY MORNING
#25: STAGE FRIGHT ON A SUMMER NIGHT
#26: GOOD MORNING, GORILLAS
#27: THANKSGIVING ON THURSDAY
#28: HIGH TIDE IN HAWAII
Merlin Missions
#29: CHRISTMAS IN CAMELOT
#30: HAUNTED CASTLE ON HALLOWS EVE
#31: SUMMER OF THE SEA SERPENT
#32: WINTER OF THE ICE WIZARD
#33: CARNIVAL AT CANDLELIGHT
#34: SEASON OF THE SANDSTORMS
#35: NIGHT OF THE NEW MAGICIANS
#36: BLIZZARD OF THE BLUE MOON
#37: DRAGON OF THE RED DAWN
#38: MONDAY WITH A MAD GENIUS
#39: DARK DAY IN THE DEEP SEA
#40: EVE OF THE EMPEROR PENGUIN
#41: MOONLIGHT ON THE MAGIC FLUTE
#42: A GOOD NIGHT FOR GHOSTS
#43: LEPRECHAUN IN LATE WINTER
#44: A GHOST TALE FOR CHRISTMAS TIME
Magic Tree House® Research Guides
DINOSAURS
KNIGHTS AND CASTLES
MUMMIES AND PYRAMIDS
PIRATES
RAIN FORESTS
SPACE
TITANIC
TWISTERS AND OTHER TERRIBLE STORMS
DOLPHINS AND SHARKS
ANCIENT GREECE AND THE OLYMPICS
AMERICAN REVOLUTION
SABERTOOTHS AND THE ICE AGE
PILGRIMS
ANCIENT ROME AND POMPEII
TSUNAMIS AND OTHER NATURAL DISASTERS
POLAR BEARS AND THE ARCTIC
SEA MONSTERS
PENGUINS AND ANTARCTICA
LEONARDO DA VINCI
GHOSTS
LEPRECHAUNS AND IRISH FOLKLORE
RAGS AND RICHES: KIDS IN THE TIME OF CHARLES DICKENS
More Magic Tree House®
GAMES AND PUZZLES FROM THE TREE HOUSE
Dragon of the Red Dawn Page 5
