avengers or the moon?

There once was a little boy named Timmy. He was six years old. His favorite holiday was Halloween and each year his mother made him the best costume. He was the envy of all other children on the street as he passed by on his quest for candy. One year he was a Harry Potter including hand-sewn robes and a replica wand. The next he decided he wanted to more unique and went with a gargoyle, which meant hours of grey makeup and shading. He was unaware of how much effort these costumes took, so each year he pushed his mom for something more elaborate.

This year as Halloween approached he figured out exactly what he should be: an astronaut, who had to have a realistic suit and headpiece, not just some store-bought plastic. His mother set to work in early September to make his dream come true, but then one day he came home from school with a new idea.

“Astronauts are boring, Mom,” he said as he entered the door. “ I am going to be Captain America.” So his mother scrapped the astronaut costume and dutifully began his Captain America. While this might seem like an easier task, he still needed plenty of props so she worked on collecting all that he needed. September came and went and soon it was October.

As the beginning of the month came and went, Timmy ran inside one night after playing and exclaimed, “I cannot be a Captain America. Drew down the street is going to be him.” So his mother put away the costume.

“Well what do you want to be then?” his mother asked.

“I want to be the moon,” he replied.

Now there was no way a moon costume could be bought and with only two weeks until Halloween, his mother worked tirelessly building a moon costume. She papier-mached and strung lights. She stayed up many nights after Timmy went to sleep making sure everything was perfect.

Then two nights from Halloween, it was time for a dress rehearsal. Timmy’s mom helped him put on the huge costume and turned on the lights. She brought him to a mirror and asked him what he thought, obviously proud of her accomplishment.

“It’s kind of heavy, Mom, and everyone at school is going as an Avenger. Can I be the Hulk?” he said. His mom’s heart sank. It was two nights until Halloween and there was no time for a new costume.

“You have changed your mind again, and again, so no Avenger for you. Maybe next year you will think before you decide, but this year you will be the moon,” she answered. Timmy knew that tone well enough not to argue and so that Halloween as people trick or treated, there was a boy in the moon.

Author's Note: In the original story, there is a man who goes to a wiseman asking to be something else. The man is unhappy being a blacksmith because it is so hot. He decided life would be better if he was a stone, but he soon finds that isn’t the life he wants either. He goes through being a blacksmith, stone, stonecutter, sun, and eventually is stuck being the moon. The wiseman let him move from thing to thing without any problems, but finally he got tired of the man’s indecision.

This from the Laos Folktales and I thought it was a fun story with a good meaning. If the man had appreciated what he had in the beginning, then he would not be stuck in the moon. I also love how stories like this explain things like why there is a shadow in the moon. While reading the story, I thought this storyline perfectly fit an indecisive kid so I changed it the whole story but kept the sentiment. The boy in my story changes his mind repeatedly as well, until finally his mom makes him be the moon for Halloween when he actually wants to be an Avenger, which was a previous costume option.

Bibliography: Laos Folk-Lore by Katherine Neville Fleeson, with photographs by W.A. Briggs (1899).

Image information: Crescent Moon, Wikimedia Commons