by Amy A. Anastasia
"Could you leave the hall light on?" Mary asked her mom as she kissed her goodnight.
"Now, Mary," said her mother, "I think you are much too old to have the hall light kept on."
Mary pulled the covers close around her as the lights went off. As she peered over her blanket, she noticed that it wasn't completely dark. There was a faint light shining across her bedroom carpet. She looked out her window and saw the moon. She wondered -- her mother had once told her a story about the man in the moon. She tiptoed out of bed and walked to the window to see if she could see him.
Mary gazed thoughtfully at the moon, and soon she could see the outline of a face. Mary decided it wasn't a very happy-looking face. In fact, the man in the moon was frowning and his eyes looked sad.
"Hello, Mr. Moon," Mary said. "Why are you so sad? Are you afraid of the dark too?"
The moon looked down at Mary. "I'm sad," he said, "because I've lost my smile."
"But, Mr. Moon," Mary replied, puzzled, "how could you lose a smile? All a smile is, is a frown turned upside-down."
The moon sighed sadly. "A moon's smile doesn't work that way. A moon's smile is magical, and when the smile loses its magic, the moon loses its smile," he explained.
"How did your smile lose its magic?" asked Mary.
"It lost its magic because people don't believe in me anymore," said the moon. "People don't use their imaginations the way they used to. I am fading like the stars. Do you know what makes the stars twinkle in the sky?" he asked.
Mary shook her head.
"They twinkle every time someone wishes on a shooting star. That's where they get their magic from," he explained. "But even the stars don't twinkle as bright as they once did, because no one wishes on them anymore."
"Don't worry," Mary said. "I believe in you, and I'll find you a new smile!"
Mary went to bed and thought about what needed to be done. She was thinking so hard, she forgot about being afraid of the dark and fell fast asleep.
The next morning Mary could hardly wait to get started on her project. All through breakfast she thought and thought. She went outside to play on her swingset. Swinging always helped her think better. As she swung higher and higher toward the sky, she finally had her answer. She would make the moon a smile -- the best smile he ever had! All afternoon, she drew, cut, and colored until she was satisfied with her project. Now all she had to do was figure out how to get the smile to Mr. Moon. All through dinner, she thought and thought. She still didn't have an answer as she got ready for bed, waiting for the moon to appear.
"Hi," said Mary, as Mr. Moon appeared from behind a cloud. "I've been waiting for you. I have a surprise," she said holding up the smile, proudly.
"That's a very beautiful smile," Mr. Moon said.
"I worked on it all day long," Mary said sighing. "Our only problem now is getting it to you way up there."
Just then a shooting star flew across the sky, and Mary remembered what the moon had told her about magical wishes. She closed her eyesand began, "Wish I may, wish I might, give the moon his smile tonight!"
When she opened her eyes there was Mr. Moon with his new smile, and all the stars in the sky were twinkling as brightly as they could. As Mary's mother kissed her goodnight she asked, "Do you want me to leave the hall light on?"
"No," Mary answered. "The man in the moon's smile is all the light I need."
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