The Lamb and the Last Goodnight

Chapter 1: The Goodnight List

The barn is dark and warm. ⟨Character 2⟩ tosses in the hay, eyes wide open.

⟨Character 1⟩: Can’t sleep, little lamb? The moon is already high. Look at you, all wriggly as a worm in a pocket.

⟨Character 2⟩: I can’t, Grandma ⟨Character 1⟩. Not until I say goodnight to every animal. Every single one. I have to make a list.

⟨Character 1⟩: A list, is it? Well, we’d better start now. I’ll light the lantern. See that little glow? That’s an ember, a tiny warm light that keeps us company in the dark. Now, who’s first on your list?

⟨Character 2⟩: The hen, please. She lives in the barn with us. Hen, are you awake? Can you say goodnight to me?

Hen: Cluck cluck, cluck. Goooodnight, little lamb.

They step out into the pasture. The grass is silver under the moon. The cow is lying down, eyes closed.

⟨Character 2⟩: Cow, cow, are you sleeping? Please say goodnight to me.

Cow: Moooo. Gooooodnight, little one.

⟨Character 2⟩: Thank you, cow. I’ll mark you on my list. Hen, cow... Grandma, we still need the horse and the dog. They’re awake, I know it.

⟨Character 1⟩: We do, do we? All right, but Grandma’s legs are getting tired. Let’s be quick now, my little list-maker.

Chapter 2: The Missing Glow

The stable is warm and quiet. The horse stands in her stall, and the dog curls on a blanket near the door.

⟨Character 2⟩: Horse, are you awake? It’s time for goodnight. Please say goodnight to me, and then I can sleep.

Horse: Neigh. Goooodnight, little lamb. Sleep tight and dream of green grass.

⟨Character 2⟩: Thank you, horse. Now you, dog. Just one goodnight, that’s all I need.

Dog: Woof. Goooodnight, ⟨Character 2⟩. Sleep well, little friend.

⟨Character 2⟩: That’s everyone: hen, cow, horse, dog. All the animals have said goodnight, and I checked each one off my list. So why can’t I sleep, Grandma ⟨Character 1⟩, and what’s wrong with me? My eyes won’t stay shut.

⟨Character 1⟩: Nothing’s wrong, little lamb. But my legs are tired and the ember is nearly out. Maybe we should count sheep instead of talking to them. Let’s go back to the barn.

⟨Character 2⟩: Wait, Grandma, look. The moon hasn’t said goodnight. It’s just hanging there, all silver and quiet. I think I need the moon to say goodnight too.

Grandma ⟨Character 1⟩ looks up at the moon. Its light spills over the hilltop like a soft, silent blanket.

⟨Character 1⟩: Oh, little lamb. The moon can’t talk. It’s just light, not a voice. How can it say goodnight?

⟨Character 2⟩: It doesn’t need a voice. Its light is a goodnight that covers the farm like a silver blanket tucking everything in. That’s the moon saying goodnight to me, and I can feel it. Goodnight, moon.

⟨Character 1⟩: Well, I never thought of it that way. A goodnight made of light, the best kind, no noise at all. And look, your eyes are closing, that’s the moon’s goodnight working. Let me stay here a moment and watch over you, because a small kindness is never wasted, little lamb.