Today we’ll be reading a story called “When The Night Came”. This story was originally released as part of my children’s podcast, A Carefully Built Pretend. We’re going to explore the fear of the unknown, and how gaining perspective can make the unknown less frightening.

The Skylark Bell is brought to you by: Phaeton Starling Publishing and Things with Wings Productions.

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FULL TRANSCRIPT:

Things with Wings Productions presents: A Skylark Special Epsiode in collaboration with A Carefully Built Pretend podcast. I am your host, Melissa Oliveri.  

Today we’ll be reading a story called “When The Night Came”. This story was originally released as part of my children’s podcast, A Carefully Built Pretend. We’re going to explore the fear of the unknown, and how gaining perspective can make the unknown less frightening.

Now, it’s time to settle in… grab a blanket, and a warm drink…  and listen to my story about the night creatures.

“Mama, could you tell me a story?” Asks the boy

“Why, of course!” replies Mama, “Which story would you like to hear?”

“Tell me the story about when the night came,” says the boy. 

Mama smiles. “Okay,” she says. She settles into the rocking chair and places a blanket on her lap. The boy fluffs his pillow and pulls his quilt up to his chin in preparation, then waits quietly for his mother to begin.

“When I was very young, I lived in the big city. At night, the world outside was lit up by streetlights, traffic lights, headlights, neon signs... it was almost as bright as day. Then the time came, when I was just about your age, for us to leave our apartment in the city and move to a house in the country. The day we arrived I was very excited; the house was surrounded by fields of tall grass, and there were woods nearby, and     a small pond, an old barn behind the house, a shed... so many new things to check out! I spent the whole day exploring, and I had so much fun, until the night came...

When the sun finally went down, the world outside was the darkest dark I’d ever seen. I looked out my bedroom window, and I couldn’t see anything at all! I opened to window to squint out at the night, and at first I thought the world outside was very quiet, but when I listened more closely I heard the strangest, scariest sounds! In the city the sounds were loud, and I always knew what they were – cars honking, sirens, construction trucks... here in the country, I didn’t recognize any of these eerie sounds.

Every night I would sleep with a light on and close my curtains, afraid of what was lurking outside. But one night, our dog, Maggie, slipped out the door and disappeared into the darkness. I ran right out behind her without even thinking about it. Maggie was my best friend, you see. I ran and ran straight into the darkness, calling Maggie’s name. Finally, I stopped, and my heart started pounding. Mama and Papa were upstairs watching TV, they didn’t know I was outside. I was alone. Alone with the dark. Alone with the night. 

I stood very, very still then, frozen in fear, when suddenly I saw it. Just beyond my reach, a small greenish yellow light blinking on and off, then another, and another... suddenly they were everywhere, staying low to the ground. I’d never seen anything like it, it was magic! Fireflies! I watched them for a while, and realized they were dancing, and their music was the sound of crickets and frogs singing a night song. They had their own special language, and I wondered what stories they were telling each other. I felt like singing and dancing along with them... I could feel the cool wet grass under my bare feet as I began moving in circles, twirling my arms in the air. I heard a new sound then, an echoing Hoooo Hoooo... it was the most beautiful sound in the world, as soft as a feather!

A breeze picked up, and I heard the tree leaves make a noise like the ocean... whoooooooosh, swish.... the wind blew away the clouds and I felt a spotlight shine down on me. This was my time to shine, my moment on stage! “Hooooo! Hoooo!” I sang in my night voice, waving my arms around like a night bird, dancing in circles like a firefly, keeping the beat with the music of the crickets and frogs as the moon cast its silver light on the top of my head. The world looked so different under that gentle, shimmering light that coated everything like a soft blanket. The dew on the leaves glistened like diamonds, the shadows danced as the trees swayed back and forth in the breeze.

I was startled out of the celebration by the sound of jingling dog tags. Maggie! I had all but forgotten about her! “Hello old friend, were you enjoying the night circus as well?” I asked, ruffling the fur on the top of her head. In the moonlight I could see her smiling, and I realized then that she knew all along... She knew how beautiful the world got, when the night came.

From that moment forward I was no longer afraid of the dark. The night creatures became my friends, the dark swaying trees my protectors, the hooting owl my duet partner and the crickets and frogs my backup band. The fireflies my ballet chorus, the dew on the leaves my precious jewels... and after that, there was never a better time of day, than when the night came.”

Mama leans back in the rocking chair. Her eyes are closed, and she has a soft smile on her face.

“Mama?” asks the boy.

“Yes, my love,” says Mama, her eyes still closed.

“Could you take me with you to the night circus sometime?” he asks.

Mama opens her eyes and ruffles the hair on top of the boy’s head, “I would love to” she answers. She stands up and drapes the blanket on the back of the rocking chair, then walks to the window and stands very still for a few minutes, looking out. Finally, she waves to the darkness on the other side before closing the curtains.

“Sweet dreams, my darling,” she whispers to the boy before turning off the lights. She smiles as darkness takes over the room and whispers one last time “Good night”.

Thank you so much for listening.

The Skylark Bell and A Carefully Built Pretend podcasts are brought to you by Phaeton Starling Publishing and feature original music by Cannelle. I would love for you to join me on Patreon for additional content and be sure to follow my social media accounts where I share regular updates and previews. 

The music you hear was composed by me, under my stage name Cannelle, specifically for A Carefully Built Pretend podcast. I also composed all music for The Skylark Bell, as well as other podcasts like Collected Sounds, Volsteadland, and The Activity Continues. If you need custom music for your projects, pleast don’t hesitate to reach out. Links to all these fantastic podcasts can be found in the show notes.

Once again, thank you for listening, I’m Melissa Oliveri, writer, producer, and host of The Skylark Bell podcast.

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