The Moon Kept One Window

Leni did not want to close her eyes. What if the cat stretched, the leaves moved, or the Moon crossed the roof without her? Night seemed full of small events that needed a watcher.

Mum opened the curtain a little. Moonlight made a pale window on the rug. “You do not have to hold the night awake,” she said. “The night knows how to continue.”

Leni chose three things to notice in the morning: where the moon-square had gone, whether the cat had changed chairs, and which bird sang first. She placed the questions beside her bed like slippers for tomorrow.

Her eyes closed for only a moment—or so it seemed. Morning arrived with the cat in the other chair and sunlight where moonlight had been. Leni had missed some events, but the world had saved new ones for her waking.