Black clouds pushed across the sky.  All at once, rain fell from the bucket in the sky.  Thunder clapped.  My feet raced from the basketball goal in my backyard towards the safety of my garage.  Suddenly, the ground opened up in front of me.  Feet, legs and scrambling arms slipped into the deep, dark
hole.  Mud and rocks followed me.  My eyes were as big as baseballs.  

        As I slid further down,  my hands grabbed at twigs and roots.  “Ahhhhhhhh!  Heellpp!”  I screamed at the top of my lungs.  The light at the top of the hole grew smaller and smaller.  After a minute of falling, my head banged on a thick root.  At the same time, my feet touched bottom.  THUMP!  Strange, squeaky noises caught my attention.  A nine-foot earthworm stretched out right in front of me.

     Immediately,  the smile on the face of the shiny, brown invertebrate caught my attention.  Round, happy fleas slipped around its rings like they were riding on a roller coaster.  Each ring shined with colored lights.  The earthworm wore a western saddle, a bridle, and a cowboy hat.  I rubbed my eyes.  Could this be real?  

     In a flash, the worm turned to me and asked, “Do you want to go on adventure?” Words wouldn’t come out of my mouth.  I just nodded and climbed aboard. Before I could think, we raced through the tunnels in the dark, damp soil. I heard an unusual sound behind us.  WHEEZE.  SNIFF.  WHEEZE.  The earthworm heard it too and started racing even faster.

     Suddenly, as I looked over my left shoulder, I spotted a monster salamander looking for a snack.  With the reins in my hand, I turned the earthworm toward a glimmer of light up ahead.  We raced past hundreds of ants.  The earthworm bucked and tried to go the other way.  I forced it to climb
up the ant hill.  As we popped out of the top, ZAP . . . the earthworm shrunk back to normal size.  Sunshine blinded my eyes.  I brushed the dirt off my pants as I pulled myself out of the hole.  The hole  immediately closed.  Although, I could still hear the sound of a hungry salamander.  SNIFF!  SNIFF!

     Since that day I always carry a tiny flashlight in my pocket just in case I ever get the chance to go on an adventure underground again.  Like the Boy Scouts, I want to be prepared in case I ever meet up with that earthworm again!