The Sun Disappeared

Midge and Booker-T were walking to Jake's house when suddenly everything went dark. “What happened?” said Midge.

“I don't know,” said Booker-T. “Where did the sun go?”

“Jake!” called Midge and Booker-T as they ran through the gate at his house. “Jake! Where are you ?”

“Slow down Midge,” said Jake as he sat up in the swing. “What is the problem?”

“Jake,” said Midge. “Someone turned off the sun!”

“It is the space aliens,” said Booker-T, “I think they turned off the sun.”

“What space aliens?” asked Jake.

“It must be space aliens,” said Midge. “Who else would turn off the sun.”

“She's right Jake,” added Booker-T. “It must be space aliens. Look no sun, Jake. It's dark out here now.”

“The sun was shining when I got up,” said Midge. “Someone turned it off in this morning.”

“It is okay Midge,” said Jake. “Nothing to worry about.”

“But the sun is off,” said Midge. “How do we turn it back on?”

“Who do we get to turn the sun back on, Jake?” asked Booker-T. “It's not suppose to be dark in the day time.”

“It will come back on by itself,” said Jake.

“How do you know?” asked Midge. “What do we do if it don't come back on?”

“Who turned it off?” asked Booker-T.

“I heard on the news that it is some kind of solar eclipse,” said Jake. “Or something like that.”

“What is a solar eclipse?” asked Midge. “I never heard of that thing. Why did it turn off the sun?”

“It didn't turn off the sun,” said Jake.

“Who did?” asked Booker-T.

“I was listening to the TV last night when my owner was watching the news,” said Jake. “They said the moon goes around the earth and sometimes gets between the sun and the earth.”

“The moon turns off the sun?” asked Booker-T.

“Will the moon turn the sun back on?” asked Midge. “I don't like it dark all the time.”

“I think the sun will come back on when the moon gets out of the way,” said Jake.

“Is the moon going to turn our sun off every day?” asked Midge.

“No,” said Jake. “I heard the man on TV say that will will be many years before it turns it off again,” said Jake.

“When is it going to turn the sun back on?” asked Booker-T.

“Look out there,” said Jake. “The sun is slowly coming back on.”

Midge looked out to the yard from the porch and saw a little light shining on the grass. “Look Booker-T,” said Midge. “They sun is coming back on.”

“The moon is in the sky almost every night,” said Booker-T. “Why did it turn off the sun this time?”

“The TV man said the moon goes round and round the earth every day,” said Jake. “This time the moon was between the sun and the earth so the sun was shining on the moon instead of the earth.”

“Wow,” said Midge. “I didn't know the moon went around and around the earth. I thought it was up in the sky all the time in the same place.”

“Do you see the moon in the daytime?” asked Jake.

Midge stood there thinking. “I don't know,” said Midge. “I really don't look up in the sky.”

“I don't either,” said Booker-T.

“In the daytime, the moon is on the other side of the earth, I think,” said Jake. “When the sun disappears in the night, it goes to the other side of the earth and the moon comes here.”

“But if the moon is on the other side of the earth,” said Booker-T. “How did it get between the sun and the earth?”

“I don't know,” said Jake. “The man on TV didn't say.”

“This moon and sun thing is confusing,” said Midge. “I like it sunny in the day time and dark at night time.”

“Me too,” said Booker-T. “I don't know anything about this thing called solar eclipse. I just like to see the sun in day and at night it turns off.”

“I don't think the sun turns off,” said Jake. “Remember we see it go down behind the mountains at night time.”

“So it just goes down and hides til the morning time,” said Booker-T.

“I think so,” said Jake. “In the morning it comes out of hiding and goes back up into the sky.”

“Why does the sun hide at night?” asked Booker-T. “Is it tired of lighting everything in the day so at night it goes to hide and sleep?”

“Maybe,” said Midge. “It goes to sleep before we do.”

“Sometimes it wakes up before we do and sometimes we wake up before it does,” said Booker-T.

“I don't think the sun sleeps,” said Jake.

“If it don't go to sleep,” said Midge. “Who turns it off in the night time?”

“Maybe it's those space aliens who turn it off at night,” said Booker-T.

“The space aliens must turn the sun on and off and lights up the moon,” said Midge. “Right Jake?”

“I don't know,” said Jake. “I never saw a space alien before.”

“Maybe they are ghost space aliens or invisible ones,” suggested Booker-T. “They are in charge of the sun and the moon.”

“Maybe that is it,” said Midge. “I hear the kids talking about the man in the moon sometimes. Maybe he is the space alien who turns off the sun at night and back on in the mornings.”

“Did you ever see the man in the moon, Jake?” asked Booker-T.

“No,” said Jake. “I didn't know there was a man living on the moon. I think long time ago, astronauts went to the moon. I wonder if they met him.”

“What are astronauts?” asked Booker-T.

“They are spacemen who fly to the moon in a spaceship,” said Jake.

“Do you think we can be astronauts?” asked Midge.

“I don't think animals can be astronauts,” said Jake. “We can't be teachers, police, firemen, and many other things that humans do. We are just animals. We just play and have fun.”

“Hey Jake,” said Midge. “The sun is back on. Lets go to the park and play.”

The three ran out the gate and hurried along the sidewalk to the park.