A World Full of Nature Stories by Angela McAllister

Author:Angela McAllister
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Frances Lincoln Children's Books
Published: 2022-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

EUROPE

A STORY FROM EASTERN EUROPE

A GARMENT FOR THE MOON

The moon was feeling unhappy. She complained to the sun that she was always cold. “I can only shine in the cool night,” she said. “I never feel the warmth of a summer’s day like you do.”

The sun felt sorry for the moon so he promised to have a garment made to keep her warm.

The sun invited all the great tailors to a meeting and asked them to sew a garment for the moon. However, after a long discussion the great tailors told the sun that it was an impossible task. “We must have measurements,” they said, “but the moon changes shape and size. Sometimes she’s full and round and sometimes she’s just a thin crescent. No garment could fit her all the time.”

The great tailors shook their heads and went home.

Before long, the humble village tailors who hadn’t been invited to the meeting heard about the sun’s request. They decided to try to help themselves. They discussed how to make a garment that could fit the moon’s changing size but nobody could solve the problem until a poor, old tailor called Yankel stood up to speak. “I’ve heard there’s a kingdom far away where they have cloth woven from light, which stretches and shrinks to fit anyone,” he said.

The village tailors were delighted. “That’s just what we need to sew a garment to keep the moon warm!” they said. Everyone agreed that as Yankel was the one who had heard about the wonderful cloth, he should be the one to fetch it. So they gave him what little money they could spare to buy the cloth and wished him good luck.

Old Yankel the tailor had no idea how to find the kingdom he had heard about. However, he packed a few belongings and set off with a hopeful heart.

Yankel traveled for many months, asking wherever he went if anyone knew where to find the marvelous cloth woven of light but nobody had heard of it. Eventually he began to wonder if the story had just been a dream.

Then one day, Yankel came to a wide river. He boarded a ferryboat to cross the water and, during the journey, asked the ferryman whether he had heard about the cloth of light.

“Indeed I have,” said the ferryman. “You will find it there,” and he pointed to a city on the far bank of the river. “But only the Queen possesses a gown made of that miraculous cloth,” he told Yankel. “It has been handed down from mother to daughter for hundreds of years as it can shrink and stretch to fit every queen perfectly.”

Yankel thanked the ferryman and traveled on to the city. “If the cloth I am searching for belongs to the Queen my journey may be in vain,” he thought to himself. But he wouldn’t give up hope.

When he reached the city, Yankel was surprised to find everyone looking very sad. He asked an old woman what was wrong. “Our princess

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