Grandpa Gave Me a Green Plastic Soldier on My Birthday for Years — One Day I Finally Understood Why, and I Was Utterly Stunned

For eighteen years, starting on my eighth birthday, Grandpa Henry gave me a single green plastic soldier annually, wrapped in newspaper, without explanation. A puzzle-loving war veteran, he shared riddles and scavenger hunts with my sister Emma and me. After he passed in hospice at my twenty-sixth birthday, I found eighteen soldiers on my shelf. Emma noticed numbers and years on their bases, forming coordinates with “N” and “E.” They led to a wooded

cottage outside our hometown. There, Walter, Grandpa’s friend, gave me keys to a smaller, ivy-covered cottage—an escape room filled with puzzles, photos, and journals revealing Grandpa’s life and love. A final letter explained he built it for me, urging me to share his passion for puzzles. I quit my job, transformed it into “The Soldier’s Trail” escape room, and added a soldier yearly at the desk, honoring Grandpa’s legacy of love and mystery.