Simran Kaur and the Lost Sketchbook

Fourteen Red Doors

Simran Kaur counted everything.

She counted the steps from her front door to the sidewalk (seven). She counted the red doors on her street (fourteen). She counted the cracks in the pavement that she had to jump over on the way to school (twenty-three, but she always lost count around the big maple tree).

This morning, the air was cold and bright. Simran walked fast, her backpack bouncing. Her lunchbox swung from one hand, and every few steps it bumped against her wrist with a small, familiar sound.

Clink.

That was her kara — the steel bracelet she always wore. It had been on her wrist for as long as she could remember, the same way her shoes were on her feet and her hair was in its braid. It was just part of her.

Today was not a regular day. Today was the class trip to High Park.

Simran had been counting down the days (eleven). She had packed her bag the night before. She had told her dad at least four times that she needed to be at school early.

"You'll be fine," he said, kissing the top of her head. "You notice things other people miss, Simran. That's your superpower."

She wasn't sure about that. But she liked the way it sounded.

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• The Five Kakars — Articles of Sikh Faith — What the Five Kakars are and why they matter
• The Drumbeat: A Holla Mohalla Story — Another story of a girl discovering something beautiful
• Hair Twins — A picture book celebrating Sikh identity through hair

About This Story

This story is the first in the Simran Kaur series — five stories set in Toronto, each woven around one of the Five Kakars (the five articles of Sikh identity given by Guru Gobind Singh Ji to the Khalsa in 1699). In this story, the Kara — a steel bracelet worn on the wrist — is present throughout as part of Simran's everyday life. The story does not explain the Kara's significance. It simply shows a girl whose hands are always in motion — counting, helping, carrying, returning — and the Kara is always there.

High Park is a real park in Toronto's west end, beloved by families. The Grenadier Pond, the stone bridge, the oak trees, and the adventure playground are all real.