Punctuation in the Corn Maze

Lost in the Corn Maze

1Every fall, the Ortega family visited the giant corn maze at Pumpkin Hill. This year, Mom and Dad agreed to wait at the exit while Lucia led her little brother, Mateo, through the maze. Lucia held the paper map in both hands and grinned. "Follow me," she said. "I know exactly where I'm going."

2For a while, she did. They turned left at a scarecrow, passed a wooden bench, and crossed a tiny bridge. Then the path split three ways. Lucia studied the map. She turned it sideways. She turned it upside down. "It's this way," she said slowly. "I think..."

3The corn stalks rose high above their heads. The wind made them rustle and whisper. Somewhere far away, a crow called. Mateo grabbed Lucia's sleeve. "Are we lost?" he asked. Lucia did not answer right away. Were they lost? She was not sure anymore.

4They walked on. The path curved left, then right, and ended at a wall of corn. Another dead end! Mateo groaned. "My feet hurt," he said. "And I'm hungry. And it's getting dark." Above the corn, the sky had turned orange and pink.

5Lucia took a deep breath. She remembered what Dad had told them at the gate: the exit was right beside the tall red flag. She tipped her head back and looked up past the corn. There it was—a red flag on a tall pole, waving above the stalks! "Mateo, I see it!" she shouted. "Come on!"

6They hurried down one path, then another. The flag grew bigger and bigger. Then the corn opened up, and there stood Mom and Dad, holding two cups of warm apple cider. Mateo threw his arms around Dad. "We made it!" he cried. Lucia folded the map and smiled. Next year, she decided, she would look for the flag from the very start.