There once was a woman named Mrs. Popsicle Stick, because she was tall and skinny like a popsicle stick. She had bright yellow hair and wore a funny purple hat.

Mrs. Popsicle was very organized, neat, and tidy. Her favorite pastime was dusting underneath the refrigerator and behind the oven. One day, she came home from the grocery store with an armful of groceries and, naturally, put them away immediately, singing as she sorted. “Oh, the ice cream in the freezer, The soap goes on the sink, The cereal in the cabinet, In the fridge there’s plenty to drink Oh, the pots go on the counter. The pans go on the shelf. The cookies are on the table, To those just help yourself.” And when she had finished she went upstairs to practice the violin.

This meant the kitchen was empty. Plenty of time for the boxes in the cabinet to get to know each other. There was Barry Bran Flakes. Charlie Corn Flakes. Sugar Frosted Sally and Easy Bake Brenda. And they all became the best of friends, laughing, giggling, and guffawing whenever they were out of earshot of Mrs. Popsicle.

One day, a new box came into the cupboard. It was sporting an orange bow tie, and was shiny and new. His name was Peter Pasta and within a matter of hours, he and Charlie Cornflake were buddies. The next day Charlie put his arm around Peter’s shoulder and said, “Peter, if we ever get separated, use this map, and you’ll find me.” It was an unusual map, with three arrows going round and round in a circle. But before Peter had time to put it in his pocket, the door to the cabinet swung open and the map fell to the floor. A long skinny hand reached inside and grabbed Peter by the waist. He was about to be eaten!

The next thing he knew, his top was popped, his spinach noodles were emptied into a pot, and he was crumpled and thrown into the garbage. And because Mrs. Popsicle was so organized and tidy, she immediately took what was left of Peter, and deposited him in the pail outside for the garbage man to pick up.

Peter was frantic. “I’ve got to get out of here! I’ll wind up crushed, pounded, or squashed. I’ll be burned in an incinerator or spend the rest of my days in a smelly landfill.” He tried to pull himself to the top of the garbage can. But no sooner did he rise to the top of the pail when he slid down its sides and rolled down the long hill in front of Mrs. Popsicle’s house. “Charlie will help me! I’ve got to find my way back to him!” he said, and started to climb up the steep hill, inch by inch.

Suddenly, a bicycle came zooming down the hill and flattened his head like a pancake. But he lifted himself up and started to climb up the hill again. he was halfway up the hill when 17 joggers, training for the New York Marathon, pounded over his already bruised box top. “Ugh, yikes, ouch, oy!” By the time he made it up the hill to Mrs. Popsicle’s house he looked crumpled, filthy and ragged like...well, like a piece of garbage! He was so flat he was able to slide under Mrs. Popsicle’s front door. As soon as he entered the house, he tiptoed into the kitchen, opened the pantry door...and Charlie was gone! Vanished! He’d been eaten!

“What should I do now? ”Peter asked in a panic. And that’s when Peter’s eyes fell on the magic map on the floor. He remembered Charlie’s words: “If we ever get separated, use this map, and you’ll find me. ”He picked it up off the floor and followed the arrows, around and around and around and around and around and around and splat!!! He smacked face first into the cabinet. “Ouch!!!! This map is useless!!! Bah Ha Bah ha. Boo hoo hoo Waaaa waaa waaaa.” He wailed like a baby. He could hardly see through his tears as he slid under the front door and sat on the outside stoop, sobbing. Unbeknownst to Peter, a miracle was looming.

At that very moment, a huge gust of wind arrived. It picked up Peter and carried him over houses and red cars and shopping malls and office buildings, past church steeples and lush hills and parking lots and drive-in movie theaters, and dropped him-Ouch!- right atop a bicycle, parked in front of a grocery store. He looked through the glass window and there it was! The Magic Map, sitting on the belly of a box of Cornflakes. Not just any cornflakes. It was Charlie Cornflakes! Peter ran inside and hugged Charlie and said, “Hey, how did you end up here, all shiny and new?”

And Charlie explained to his buddy that the map was really a special recycling symbol. “Every time you see one of these maps on our bellies, it means we’ve been recycled from old paper and cardboard and made new again.” “Hey, I’d like to be shiny and new too!” said Peter, and he threw himself into the recycling bin at the front of the store.

“See you soon Charlie!” he said as he landed atop a pile of old newspapers. So the next time you’re in the grocery store, look for the magic map.

It may even be Peter Pasta.