Chapter 1

The Collection

“¡Atención!” Sofia said. “I need each of you to fill out my question sheet, por favor.”

“I can’t,” Manuel said. “I don’t know how to write.”

“I’ll write for you,” Sofia said. “What do you want to be when you grow up?”

“A firefighter,” Manuel said.

“Describe yourself in one word,” Sofia said.

“Brave!” Manuel said.

Sofia asked more questions. She wrote down Manuel’s answers. Then she collected all of the sheets and put them in a cookie tin.

“Why are you putting those papers in a cookie tin?” Manuel asked.

“Because we’re making a family time capsule,” Sofia said.

“¿Por qué?” Manuel asked.

“So we can have fun in the future by looking at our past,” Sofia said.

Sofia’s cousins helped her find other things for the time capsule.

“Here’s a seashell to remember our beach trips,” Alonzo said.

“Here are my favorite drum sticks,” Hector said.

“Are you sure?” Sofia asked. “They will stay in the time capsule for ten years.”

“Don’t worry. I have another pair,” Hector said.

“You can take my toy fire truck,” Manuel said.

“¡Excelente!” Sofia said.

Except there was a problem. The cookie tin wouldn’t close.

“You need something bigger,” Alonzo said.

Sofia searched until she found a giant jar of pretzels.

“It’s half full,” Hector said.

“Sí.” Sofia smiled. “Let’s start eating!”