After a long day at school, James expected his mom to be there to greet him. When he opened the door, the house was so quiet he could hear a pin drop.

"Mom?" James called out, feeling scared. "Where are you?"

Walking through the empty house, James found a letter on the kitchen counter. He recognized his mom's handwriting on the front and quickly opened it, hoping to find out where she had gone.

Reading its contents, he found:

Hello my sweet James,

            You may be wondering where I am at the moment. Don't worry, my sweet boy, I am simply on a journey to find inner peace. I left you some money on the counter in case you get hungry. Remember to stay safe and do your homework! I love you so much, my dear.

                        Lots of love,

                                            Mom

By the time he finished reading, James was crying, and his hands were shaking as he held the letter. He didn’t want this to happen. Thinking about why his mom might have left made his stomach growl.

Im hungry, James thought. I’ll figure out what to do after I get some food.

After ordering a pepperoni pizza, James sat on the couch and thought, If Mom isn’t home by tomorrow morning, I’ll go look for her.

When the doorbell rang, he jumped up, grabbed a ten-dollar bill, and went to get the pizza.

After filling up his stomach with the delicious pizza, James ventures over to his bed and begins to tuck himself in.

Mom, please come back fast James thought, as he slowly drifted off from exhaustion.

Waking up to sunlight shining through his window, James takes a while to realize the lack of fresh bacon in the air, along with the joyful singing that usually followed with his mom getting him out of bed.

Just you wait, Mom. I'll find a way to bring you back home he thought.

Following the man to his house, James starts to wonder if this was a good idea. Lost in his thoughts, he bumps into something, or someone in this case.

"Lost in thought?" the man asked. "Don't worry, that happens to me plenty." Slowly nodding, James looks up and sees a simple house. This should be interesting.

"Would you like something to eat? I don't have much right now, but I have some leftover Chinese food if you'd like," the man asks, rubbing the back of his head.

Quickly nodding, James follows him into the kitchen where he is told to sit on a bar stool.

Placing the container of food in front of him, the old man quickly stops James just as he was about to take a bite.

"Wait! You forgot to pray!" the Old Man exclaims, making James jump in surprise.

"What is praying?" James says, looking confused.

"It's basically like a conversation with God. Engaging in prayer helps enrich one's faith and provide deeper insights on the purpose that God has for your life," the Old Man explains. (Importance) 

"Oh," James replies, taking in the information, "So what do I talk to him about?"

"Personally, I like to express my gratitude to God for providing me with the food." the Old Man slowly explains, "It's similar to thanking someone for making you food. Just thank him for the food you're about to recieve." (Why Do We Pray). 

"I see," James says, nodding his head. Closing his eyes and clapping his hands together, James recites, "Thank you for the food I'm about to recieve."

Finishing his prayer, James squinted his eyes to adjust to the bright kitchen light, and begins to dig into his food. 

    "So can you pray for anything? Or is it just a practice you do before             meals?" James asks, with curiousity glistening in his eyes. 

    "Many Christians, like myself, like to pray in hopes for God to grant us     our wishes or help us through hard times." the Old Man explains,             estatic that the young boy is excited to be leanring about his religon         (FOYE). 

Getting into bed, James decided to take the Old Man's information to heart, and closes his eyes while clasping his hands together.

"Dear God, please help me find my mother or guide me to where she is. I'm begging you." James says, slowling releasing his hands.

It's probably not going to work James thought as he slowly drifted off to sleep

Little did he know, a small note magically appeared next to his head, that could contain secret information regarding his goal. 

Waking up in the morning, James hears crumpling next to him as he tries to stretch his muscles.

        What is this?  James thought, looking confused. I don't remember anything like this yesterday night. 

Opening up the piece of paper, James read: 

Hi James, 

    I recieved your wish last night. Watching you from above your whole life, you seem like a good kid, so in this case, I have decided to help you out. Just remember, follow your heart and keep your intentions pure and you'll succeed in your adventure.

                    From, 

                                God

Feeling hopeful, James gets up quickly and goes to see the Old Man in the kitchen. 

"Thank you for everything! I'll find a way to pay you back one day," James says as he packs his things into his bag.

    "No need for that! I helped because I could. Anyone would have done the             same," the Old Man says with a smile, waving away James' promise.

After finishing his breakfast, James thanks the Old Man again for being so kind.

     "We'll meet again sometime!" the Old Man says, waving goodbye from his             doorway. 

James decides to follow the advice from the note he found and starts his journey to the next town.

Exploring the new city, James suddenly stops in front of a temple.

    "Hey kid! Are you hungry?" a lady asks while raking leaves in front of     the temple.

    "A little. What is this place?" James replies, walking slowly toward her.

    "You're at a Buddhist temple. If you're hungry, just come inside. We         have food just in case we run into people in need." 

Thinking for a moment, James slowly nods and follows the lady inside.

    "Just sit here while I make you a plate. Do you eat vegetables?                 Everything here is vegetarian," the woman asks. (Tran). 

    "Yeah, vegetables are fine. Thank you so much!" James exclaims.

As the woman goes into the kitchen, James swings his legs and looks curiously around the room. He sees a huge gold statue with a plaque at the bottom.

    "Siddhartha Gautama," James reads. "I wonder who that is."

As the lady brings in a big plate filled with rice and colorful vegetables, she notices James's deep curiosity about the statue.

    "That's Buddha, the Enlightened One," the lady explains as she hands him             the plate. "He discovered how to eliminate suffering." (Basics). 

    "How do you do that?" James asks, digging into the food.

   "Buddha's teachings, the Four Noble Truths, say that suffering comes from         wanting things too much," the lady explains, taking a seat across from                 James. "If you can let go of those wants by following the eightfold path, you        can reach spiritual enlightenment, or what we Buddhists call nirvana."                     (Basics).