Eclipse

Chapter Ten

"There is going to be an eclipse of the moon tonight." Chips' mom said as she cleaned the dishes from the table.

Chips put his dish in the soapy water and asked, "What's an eclipse?"

"When the sun, earth, and moon are lined in a straight path, the shadow of the earth passes over the moon and darkens it for some time. That will happen tonight."

Charley poked his head through the door, "Do you remember William telling us about eclipses? I cannot wait to see the eclipse tonight.

"Hello Charley," said Chips.

"Are you planning to stay up to see it?" asked Chips.

Chips looked up at his mom and asked, "May I please?"

"Yes, we can all go up to the top of Roly-Poly Hills so we can see it together," answered Chips' mom.

"Hurray!" shouted Chips.

Chips was very excited. He hopped out the door and joined Charley outside.

They spend the day playing near Silver Stream. They hopped from stone to stone and practiced balancing on logs and branches that hung across the water. A few times, they slipped and fell in, but it was not too painful to get wet. The days were getting warmer, and the cool water almost felt good after all their hopping about.

Charley had supper at Chips' house. They enjoyed hearing Chips' dad tell stories about his childhood.

He said, "The first time I saw an eclipse I thought the moon was going to disappear and never come back again. I was relieved to see it come back."

Chips' mom laughed, "I remember hearing that the moon was made of cheese. When we watched the eclipse, my sister told me that mold was spreading across the moon."

Charley said, "When William was here, he would tell us all about the stars and planets."

"Yes," Chips added, "I cannot wait until he comes back. I am sure he was have so much more to share with us."

After the supper dishes were put away, they all headed for Roly-Hill. On the way, they saw Grumpy Gopher standing in front of the house looking up at the moon.

"Time for another eclipse again I hear," he said.

"We are going to view in from the top of Roly-Poly Hill," said Chips' mom. "Would you like to come with us?"

Grumpy snorted, "All that walking just for an eclipse? I will settle for what I can see from here."

"Oh, but the sky is much more clear on the hill," said Chips' dad. "It will be a beautiful sight."

"No thanks," muttered Grumpy. "Soon, I am going inside to relax. I don't need to go all that extra way just to see the moon grown dark."

"Have it you way," Chips' dad said and they left Grumpy to walk up the hill."

"After all it is just the moon," Grumpy mumbled to himself. "It's not like it is anything important like my garden."

The sky was very clear from the top of the hill. The stars sparked brilliantly, and the full moon glowed above the trees. The eclipse was just starting. A dark crescent soon formed on the side of the moon.

Everything around them was very still. The only movement was the occasional bat flying overhead. They watched the eclipse in silence. It was a wonderful feeling to be under the stars and the moon. As the moon grew more and more dark, the stars grew more and more bright.

All of a sudden, a shooting star lit up the sky. Charley smiled and thought of the time they met Rocky and Rhonda. He wondered where they were now. He also wondered if William was outside with his teachers learning exciting things as he watched the eclipse. Then Charley thought about the Gubazah Monster. Was he looking at the moon also? Was he still sad and lonely?

Thinking about the Gubazah Monster made Charley feel sad, but he could not help but also feel happy too as he stood on the hill with his friends. He enjoy the sense that he was connected to his distant friends who may be watching the same thing from a distance.

When the eclipse was over, they slowly walked back home. Charley was invited to stay overnight. During the night, Charley had a dream about being on the moon and looking down on all of the creatures on earth. Somehow everything made sense, but he could not quite remember the reason why when he woke up the next morning.