Mia and the Star in the Tomatoes

Mia was the only girl in the whole village who could hear a star hum.

She heard it one night from her bed. It was a small hum, like a bee in a jar. Mia put on her sneakers and tiptoed to the yard.

There, between the tomato plants, sat a star. It was no bigger than a cookie, and it glowed softly gold.

"Oh!" said Mia. "You fell down."

The star hummed a sad hum. Mia understood. It wanted to go home, back up to the sky.

"I'll help you," she said.

First, Mia lifted the star in both hands and held it high. It was warm, like a mug of milk. But the sky stayed far away, and the star stayed in her hands.

"Up, up, up," said Mia. Nothing happened.

Next, she climbed the garden ladder with the star in her pocket. She stretched her arm toward the dark. Still nothing. The star hummed its sad hum again.

Mia sat down on the bottom step. She felt a little cross. Then she noticed something. When she hummed, the star hummed back, and its light grew brighter.

"Oh," she whispered. "You like songs."

So Mia hummed a long, slow note. The star hummed with her. She hummed higher, and the star glowed gold, then white.

Far up in the sky, a tiny light blinked. Then another. They were humming too.

Mia hummed once more, as high and as soft as she could. The star rose out of her hands like a bubble. It floated over the tomatoes, past the roof, and up, up, up.

Something went a little wrong, though. On its way, the star gave a big hiccup. "Hic-POP!" A tomato jumped off the vine and bounced across the grass.

Mia laughed and covered her mouth.

High above, a gold light slipped into its place between the others. It hummed down to her, soft and glad.

Mia hummed back, and the yard hummed with her, until her eyes grew heavy and the little light went on glowing.