Asa here. Before setting off on our vacation I read Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island. It’s hard to believe with all the silly things that Chuck Billy believes, finding a map leading to buried treasure isn’t one of them. Would you believe he told me the days of pirate maps and finding treasure chests were long over? Well luckily I still believe in the Golden age of pirates!
It wasn’t long after we arrived at our vacation cottage that I spotted a pirate ship lurking in the fog. That was all the proof I needed to begin my quest for treasure.
How could Chuck Billy believe in UFOs and NOT pirate ships, when one was clearly hiding in our cove?
But where could their treasure be hidden? The next day I found exactly what I needed, a genuine pirate map! It’s odd that they left it out in the middle of that park for all to see. But probably only because it takes a trained eye to be able to interpret it. Now where did it lead?
Chuck Billy laughed at my discovery. But I knew I just had to decipher this ancient map to find my treasure.
The next day I couldn’t believe my luck when I stumbled upon a large X on the beach where no doubt the pirates buried their treasure chest!
Every treasure hunter knows “X Marks the Spot!”
However, there were too many dogs on the beach that day, who may have stolen my treasure from me. Therefore, I discreetly marked the X so I could go back later and claim it as mine.
Marking my claim so I can easily find the X later.
I then whispered to Chuck Billy my big discovery, and…he laughed. He said, “Look at all these dogs playing on this beach. What makes you so sure none of them would ever think to dig under that X?” Go point. This could be some kind of pirate trick! Those dogs could actually be pirates! That would explain the rough language that little dog used when barking at me.
Thank goodness I shared my secret with Chuck Billy. Otherwise I could have fallen victim to a pirate trap!
My quest continued when we visited the site of an old earthworks fort. My imagination ran wild with thoughts of what could be buried underneath that mound. But again, Chuck Billy, my ever present voice of reason, told me that it was yet another obvious trick.
Chuck Billy, AKA Debbie Downer, telling me the pirate treasure couldn’t possibly be hidden under that earthworks mound. Even pirates know it is illegal to dig at a historic site.
As the week wore on I came down with a severe case of treasure fever. I started searching for it in the most ridiculous of places!
By this point I was clearly confusing the plot of “Treasure Island” with the Nicholas Cage movie “National Treasure.”
I finally had to accept that I wasn’t going to find treasure during this vacation…or was I?
Coming to grips with this being a boring vacation without pirate treasure. Stop laughing at me Chuck Billy!
However, I soon got over my pity party and rallied. Jim Hawkins never gave up in Treasure Island, and things were far worse for him on his adventure. That’s when I saw once again, hiding in the fog in our cove, that mysterious pirate ship!
The pirate ship returned!
I realized then that I didn’t need to decipher that map in the park to find my treasure. The treasure chest I had been so desperately searching for must be hidden here at our cottage! Why else would that pirate ship be lurking in our cove?
I began searching for clues in the cottage, starting with this whimsical lamp.
That’s when I realized, the pirate treasure was hidden in plain sight all along! Just look at this treasure chest in the living room! It even has the initials of the Royal Navy on the front of it! How could I be so silly not to notice it sitting right here?
How could I miss this pirate chest sitting right here in our vacation cottage?
I opened it, and sure enough there was my long sought after treasure – a squeaky frog and other dog toys!
Just like in Treasure Island, I found the coveted prize!
But what if the pirates wanted it back? If I remember the book correctly, the pirates almost killed Jim Hawkins over their treasure.
What if the pirates were watching me from their ship in the cove?
What if we they stayed in this cottage before us and forgot to pack their treasure? I better go hide my precious new squeaky frog!
You won’t tell the pirates, will you? Or worse yet, you’re not a pirate reading this are you? No wonder Chuck Billy wanted nothing to do with my Golden treasure map! Treasure hunting is dangerous!
