The Staycation by Anya Ramamurthy

The Staycation

Maya stared at her filled suitcase that had taken her hours to pack. The cute outfits, the travel journal, and even the travel accessories. It was all useless to her now. There wouldn’t be any great tales to tell her friends. No England, France, or Italy for her. Her summer dreams evaporated like water on a hot day.

Her twin brother Cameron stomped into her bedroom. “I can’t believe it! Of all the times, Dad had to accept a big project on our vacation days!” he grumbled. “This whole thing is just so unfair!”

“Dad let us down,” Maya fumed. Three weeks at home? What in the world were they going to do? “There goes our chance to see the Colosseum and the Louvre.”

“And that awesome Chelsea Stadium tour,” Cameron added, and they both sulked off to their rooms.

The next morning they awoke to a note taped to both their bedroom doors:

Come to the garage if you want to cure your boredom.

They were intrigued. Maya and Cameron opened the door to the garage, where two bright and shiny new bikes stood.

“Whoa!” Cameron was stunned. The bikes were the newest model, painted with both of their favorite colors.

“A purple bike!” Maya squealed. “This definitely beats our old rusty ones.” They were busy checking out the new bikes when their mom and dad came in.

“I see you like our little surprise,” said Mom.

“But there’s one condition.” Dad continued. “Look in your bike baskets.” Inside their bike baskets was a taped note.

STAYCATION QUEST

To make up for the fact that we won’t be traveling in Europe this summer, we’ve decided to give you some local excitement. Complete these tasks to learn more about our town and the people that live here. Complete them all and there will be a reward. Make a new friend

Find a new place in town that you haven’t been to before

Help with a community project

Maya: Since you’re not going to the Louvre, find art that is not in a museum.

Cameron: Since you’re not going to Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge, find a game of your own to participate in.

And we think this is the most important- both of you must conquer a fear (but nothing dangerous)!

The only rule is that you must record your experiences in these journals. Now, let the Staycation Quest begin!

The next day, Maya and Cameron mounted their new bikes and set off on a neighborhood adventure. It was a beautiful, middle-of-the-summer day, so they stopped downtown to get ice cream. They pulled out the Staycation Quest list to study while they ate.

“Let’s do the second task first. ‘Find a new place in town that you haven’t been to before’.” Cameron suggested, as he crunched the last of his chocolate cone.

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“Great! We’re already downtown anyway.” Maya noticed a poster in the front window of the ice cream shop. 50% Off Everything - Summer Sale! Come check out Secondhand Treasure for details! “Hey, I haven’t heard of Secondhand Treasure! Let’s go there!”

Cameron hopped on his bike and beckoned his sister to follow. “At least we found something new in this podunk town,” Cameron said.

Secondhand Treasure was located in the back of downtown. In the store, Maya and Cameron found racks full of used clothing. Most were in good condition. Cameron found an aisle full of old trinkets and even some sports gear.

“How have we never been here before? It’s so much cheaper than going to the mall!” Maya exclaimed, holding up a skirt to her legs. “All of this vintage 90s stuff is super trendy right now!”

“Whoa, these baseball cards might actually have collector value!” Cameron rifled through an old binder. Maya took the list out of her pocket and crossed off the “new place” task. Later, she went home and wrote an entry in her journal.

Dear Journal,

Discovered a thrift store today and completed my first task The store is the only place that sells those cool flare jeans! I’ll totally shop at Secondhand Treasures again. Still, we’d both rather be in Europe. - Maya

With only six days to finish the challenge, Maya and Cameron decided to divide and conquer. Cameron would find a “game of his own”, and Maya would find “art that wasn’t hanging in a museum”. After discussing the plan, they rode off to their destinations.

Cameron had to find a game to participate in, so why not go to the park? There had to be someone else waiting to play a game of pickup basketball or some other sport. Cameron saw that the courts and fields were mostly deserted, but he did see a group of older men sitting at some picnic tables. They were playing chess. He approached them, and they looked up.

“Hello, young man! Have you come to play with us?” one man asked. Another man beckoned to his empty board, and Cameron sat down. He hadn’t played chess very much, so within ten minutes, his opponent defeated him.

“Checkmate!” his opponent said. “You put up a good fight. My name’s Robert, by the way.”

“Good game! How did you get this great at chess?” Cameron asked.

“Strategy, my son, strategy. Well, practice too,” Robert told him. “I can teach you, if you want.” Cameron spent the rest of the morning learning new strategies and talking with the other chess players. Once he returned home, he made another entry in his journal.

Dear Journal,

Instead of playing a game of sports, I played chess. One man, Robert, taught me some new chess moves, like some openings where you have a straight shot to checkmate. Chess is actually a sport! There’s even an all board and card game day on Fridays. Maya might like it. It’s not the Colosseum or a soccer stadium, but it’ll do. - Cameron * * *

Meanwhile, Maya was stumped. Where would I find art that’s not in a gallery or museum? She decided to bike to the library, where she could research nearby art exhibits.

When she arrived, she saw a beautiful, colorful mural that spanned the whole outer library wall. It definitely counted for her list. After sketching parts of the mural, it was starting to get hot, so she went indoors. The library had a modern art installation and different sculptures. There were even places where someone could create their own art and display it. Some of the artwork appeared professional! Maya asked the librarian about the art.

“When we remodeled the library, we wanted to be a hub for all of the arts, not just literature,” she explained.

“That’s awesome!” Maya pointed to a canvas hung on the wall. “Can you tell me more about that painting? It really catches my eye.”

“Oh, that piece was made by Virgina McKay. Her studio is right around the corner, where she teaches art classes,” answered the librarian.

Wow! I’ll think about meeting her, Maya considered as she waved and drifted away to look at other pieces. As soon as she got home, she was bursting with information to write in her journal.

Dear Journal,

The library is also an art gallery! What an unexpected place to find art! The mural outside is stunning Virgina, the artist I met, teaches art classes Maybe I can learn to create my own masterpiece Mona Lisa, here I come! Not quite the Louvre, though - Creatively, Maya

After a few days, Cameron and Maya were worn out. Biking everywhere in the hot sun was no easy feat, so they walked, instead of biking, to the new boba shop in town. The summer day had turned refreshingly cool, thanks to light rain the previous night.

As they walked in silence, Maya thought about the list. With this much time together, we could be arguing, but it’s bringing us closer, and the tasks are actually interesting. They arrived at the boba shop and sat down on a bench with their drinks. Cameron gulped down his drink and yawned, feeling relaxed. Their thoughts were interrupted by a whimper. A scraggly mutt with caramel-colored fur had found its way to their bench.

“Hey, boy!” Cameron said, scratching its head.

“Don’t touch it!” warned Maya. “The dog probably has rabies or fleas!”

“It must be a stray.” Cameron ignored her warning. He examined the dog. “There’s no collar.”

“Why don’t we take it to the animal shelter? I think it’s right around the block.”

Cameron nodded and they set off. They took turns carrying the dog, though Maya let Cameron, the athletic one, do most of the heavy lifting. Maya opened the door to the animal shelter, where she was greeted with a cacophony of animal noises. Her eyes widened. It was a little chaotic for Maya, who liked order. A girl not much older than the twins appeared at the front counter.

“Whatcha got there?” the girl asked.

“I think we have a lost or stray dog,” Cameron said.

“Someone probably abandoned it. It happens a lot nowadays. I’ll take it to the vet in the back room - We can check it for diseases and find out if it’s microchipped, ” the girl explained matter-of-factly.

Maya wondered as she walked to meet the vet. How is she so knowledgeable? Were all of these animals abandoned? The vet gave the dog a clean bill of health, and declared it a “lost dog” on its admission record. If no one claimed it in two weeks, then it would be officially up for adoption.

“My name’s Audrey. I can give you a tour of the shelter if you want.” She showed them all of the cages of the cats and dogs that had been rescued. As they walked into each room, the animals erupted in barks and meows, begging for attention. Maya felt like adopting all of them.

Audrey went on to explain volunteering opportunities as she gave them the tour. “You can walk the dogs or help clean cages. They all love attention.”

“So, can we visit Caramel tomorrow?” Cameron asked. He had already come up with a name for the dog—the color of its fur. Maya and Cameron realized that they could check off another Staycation task “make a new friend”! They completed their journal entries a few days later, after they had gotten to know their new friends, both girl and dog.

Dear Journal,

Who knew there were so many animals in need of a home in this town? It makes me sad, really But Audrey is a great new friend She knows so much about animals, and I’ve been helping her around the shelter It makes me realize the opportunities for new friendships during summer vacation - I never would have met Audrey during the school year - Maya

Dear Journal,

I have a new friend - a four-legged one! Caramel is awesome! I’ve already been teaching him a bunch of tricks. Every time I walk into t he shelter, he starts barking and wagging his tail. Another Staycation task done! - Cameron

There was only one Staycation task left: the one they both dreaded conquering a fear. They had saved the hardest task for last. But with the motivation of a reward, they were determined to complete the list. They agreed to choose the challenge for each other.

“I dare you to sing karaoke by yourself in front of your friends,” Cameron had a sly grin. “And we will pick the song.”

“What!? I can’t do that! I’m terrible at karaoke!” Maya knew it was unavoidable. Her worst fear was performing in front of other people. She could barely do presentations at school, and now singing? He had chosen the ultimate dare for her.

“You have a great voice, actually,” Cameron reassured her. “Now tell me mine.”

“You have to handle some bugs including a tarantula at the junior museum,” Maya grinned. Bullseye!

“Spiders? No! No! No! They’re creepy, crawly and disgusting!” Cameron made a face and squirmed.

“Exactly! The last time you saw one in the shower, you screamed so loud, the whole neighborhood could hear you!”

Now came the fun part actually doing the tasks. Maya was sure she would make a fool of herself. Even worse, Cameron had picked a gushy, terrible love song with so many verses that she blushed. She winced as she sang the first words: “I fell in love / the moment I saw you.” Her face felt like it was on fire. What if someone caught it on video? She tried not to look out at the audience while she sang.

Once she finished her song, and sighed with relief. Her friends didn’t tease her at all; they only had compliments for her. “Should I try out for the school musical now?” Maya joked. Her stage fright had finally disappeared.

“Actually, yeah!” said one of Maya’s friends, Simone. “We always need great singers like you to join the cast.”

Dear Journal, I’m a pop star now! Today I finally conquered my stage fright! I’m glad that’s all over I can’t wait to see Cameron face his fear of spiders! - Maya * * *

At the Junior Museum, the animal director, Hannah, showed Cameron how to handle the tarantula. She picked it up with ease.

“You have to be gentle and calm when it comes to holding these creatures. If you scare them, that’s when they bite,” she instructed.

How is someone supposed to stay calm holding a big, furry arachnid?! Cameron shivered.

“And as part of your volunteering, you’ll be my assistant for the Arthropod Showcase this morning.” She turned to the entrance, calling out, “Welcome children, to our Arthropod Showcase!” Hannah ushered in children, along with Maya, who had come to watch. “My assistant Cameron will hold the tarantula and bring it around for you to touch! Arthropods aren’t scary at all, contrary to what many people think.” She handed him the spider, and Cameron stood, paralyzed, as the spider slowly moved around on his hand. Its furry legs tickled his arm. “If you look at the spider, you can see its eight legs, and if you look closer, you might even be able to see its multiple eyes.”

Cameron tried to look anywhere but the spider, and he saw Maya trying not to laugh. He felt the spider slowly creeping up his arm. Its furry legs were getting increasingly close to his sleeve. What if it went down his shirt and bit him? Don’t move, don’t move, don’t move! Cameron breathed a sigh of relief when Hannah took the tarantula off of his shirt.

“But we’re not over yet! Cameron is going to hold another animal so I can tell you more about it!” After the children left, Hannah smiled and thanked him. “Cameron, you did so well, I want to invite you to be my assistant for the Reptile Show next week.”

Dear Journal,

I conquered a fear—I held a tarantula today! They’re not so creepy after all. You just have to get to know them. The next time I see a spider, I might not be so quick to squish it with my shoe. Hannah says that you can even have tarantulas as pets, but I’m not ready for that yet. - Cameron

“Mom, Dad, we finished the staycation quest!” Cameron informed them when they returned from work that afternoon.

“And we wrote the journal entries for each one!” Maya added.

The next morning at breakfast Mom announced, “We’ve read your journals, and you’ve proved to us that you have learned a lot about your community.”

Dad cut to the chase.“We’ll take the Europe trip next summer. I’ve cleared it with my work so nothing will come up during the trip.”

“Yes!!!” Maya and Cameron cheered.

Mom added, “And once Caramel is put up for adoption, we can look into adding him to our family.” Maya and Cameron cheered all over again.

One year later…

The following summer, Maya and Cameron finally got to see the Eiffel Tower, the Chelsea Stadium, the Colosseum, and the Louvre. But they couldn’t stop thinking about all of their Staycation friends they had met the summer before.

Whether it was their own town or a European village, they could see the same kinds of people. People helping each other and eating ice cream, children playing in the park, ladies with small dogs in their purses, vendors making art on the streets. All kinds of different people going about their lives, every person significant to their town. A Staycation and a vacation were two different experiences, but the people were the same, no matter where you went.

Maya and Cameron were eager to share these experiences with their old friends, and wrote them postcards from Europe.

To Everyone at Secondhand Treasure,

We saw these cool masks all over Venice Maybe you should sell some in your shop! See you soon for back-to-school shopping! - Maya and Cameron

Dear Robert,

I’m glad chess isn’t as violent as being a gladiator in the Colosseum. I used the checkmate you taught me to beat someone here! Can’t wait to get back and learn some new tricks! - Cameron

Dear Virginia,

I went to the Louvre today It’s a huge palace filled with art! It inspired me to sign up for your new portrait class so I can create my own masterpiece It’ll be titled the Maya Lisa! - Maya

Dear Audrey and Caramel, We miss you both! A few days ago, in Paris, we saw a lady with the tiniest dog in her purse. Too bad Caramel’s too big for that. I saw a couple of stray dogs in the piazza yesterday. I pictured you taking them in at the shelter, Audrey. Take good care of Caramel for us, and we’ll see you next week!

- Maya and Cameron