BACK

INVENT4  5' An inventor's daughter uses his inventions

Michaela's dad was an inventor. An inventor makes things that
nobody has ever made before. Michaela's dad made things that
were so good that men in army uniforms would come to the house
to see if his latest invention could be used by the army.

Michaela's dad usually kept his workshop locked when he wasn't
working on an invention. But one day, Michaela came by the door
when it wasn't locked and her dad wasn't home. So, she peeked
in. The room was dark, but she could see what looked like a tiny
television on the work table.

Michaela looked around to make sure her dad couldn't see her,
then she turned on the light. Then she saw that it wasn't a
television. It was a compact camera. She picked up the camera
and examined it.

"This is just a regular camera." Michaela said to herself. "I
wonder what it's doing in Daddy's workshop."

Michaela watched the screen as she aimed the camera at the
calendar on the far wall of the workshop, then she pushed the
button to take the picture. But instead of a picture of the
calendar, the screen showed a tree, some bushes and a fence.

"That's our backyard!" Michaela said, "Must be left over from
the last picture Daddy took."

So, Michaela pointed the camera at the tool chest and pressed
the button. But instead of a tool chest, the little screen on
the back of the camera showed the tools INSIDE the tool chest.

"This can't be!" Michaela said to herself. This camera can't be
looking THROUGH things!"

So, she aimed the camera at another wall and pressed the button.
Again, the screen showed a clear picture of what was outside in
the yard.

Just then, Michaela heard the cries of the little neighbor girl,
Emily. Michaela ran outside as Emily was coming through the side
gate. Michaela realized that she was still holding the camera,
so she held it behind her back.

"What's the matter, Emily?" ask Michaela.

"Fluffy ran away!" cried Emily.

Fluffy is the name of Emily's cat.

Michaela replied, "Maybe he's just sleeping somewhere."

"No," cried Emily, "I just popped a balloon. Fluffy got scared
and ran away."

Michaela pushed Emily toward the side gate and said, "I tell you
what Emily, I will find Fluffy for you. You go home and wait in
case Fluffy comes home."

"Okay!" cried Emily as she headed home.

Michaela knew that Emily's cat never wanders far from home, so
she circled Emily's house snapping pictures with the new camera.
Michaela was able to see behind the garbage cans, behind the air
conditioner, behind the bushes, everywhere Fluffy hides when
something scares her. But Michaela couldn't see Fluffy anywhere.

So, she aimed the camera at the walls of Emily's house and
snapped pictures as she walked around the house again. This
allowed Michaela to see into all the rooms of the house. She
could even see Emily sitting on the floor near the front door
waiting for fluffy to come home.

Finally, Michaela saw fluffy hiding behind the shoes in Emily's
closet.

Michaela knocked on Emily's front door. Emily came running and
pulled the door open excitedly.

"Did you find her?!" asked Emily.

"Look in your closet." replied Michaela.

Emily ran to her bedroom and returned a few seconds later with
fluffy in her arms.

"Here she is!" Emily said.

"Well, she's okay now." replied Michaela as she headed home.

"Thank you, Michaela!" cried Emily. "Thank you!"

Michaela took the camera home and pointed the camera at the
couch. She found two TV remote controls that had been lost for
weeks in the couch cushions. She also found 75 cents in lost
coins there. Later, she found her Mom's earrings that had been
lost and forgotten, but had merely fallen off the back of the
dresser and wedged against the wall.

Then Michaela took the camera outside and pointed at the hollow
tree where she'd seen squirrels earlier.

"Look! There's baby squirrels in there!" Michaela said
excitedly.

Michaela also snapped a picture of the underside of a robin's
nest high in the tree. The picture showed baby birds being fed
by their mother in the nest.

But the best part of the day was when Michaela went by the 7-11
store and snapped several pictures of the store from outside in
the parking lot. She saw Tommy, the naughty neighbor boy, inside
the store taking things off the shelf and stuffing them inside
his jacket, then looking around to see if anyone saw him. Noone
could see except Michaela who was outside the store.

Michaela immediately went in to the store and told the cashier
what she saw. The cashier stopped Tommy at the door and asked
him to open his jacket. He began to cry as he handed the stolen
merchandise back to the cashier.

"Please don't call the cops! I won't ever do it again! I swear!"

"Get out of here and don't come back!" shouted the cashier.

Then the cashier turned to Michaela and asked, "Say, how did you
know he was stealing? You were outside. You couldn't have seen
him."

"Oh, um, ah, I know that boy. He does stuff like that all the
time." replied Michaela as she hurried out the door.

When she got home, she tried to put the camera back into the
workshop, but the door was locked. When she turned around, her
father was there.

"What's that in you're hand?!" he asked, "I've been looking for
that!"

Michaela was grounded for a week.

©2007 Bob Snook. Conditions for use:
This story is free. Pay no fees or royalties.
Do not sell this story or rewrite it.
You may reproduce and distribute this story freely,
but all copies must contain this copyright statement.
http://www.fea.net/bobsnook/kid  email: bobsnook@fea.net

BACK