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Patrick is afraid of the dark when his big sister, Margy offers him a perfect solution and how to solve his dilemma.
THE BOY WHO WAS AFRAID OF THE DARK
Patrick was almost two years old, when just before his second birthday party, something amazing happened! Patrick discovered he was afraid of the dark, and this occurred at 12 midnight on the 12th day of the 12th month. It happened when everyone else in the house was asleep, and Patrick woke up, in the dark, all alone!
Now, this situation was very odd, and unlike anything that ever happened to Patrick before. Also, Patrick’s feelings were unlike any feelings that he had ever had before. This new feeling of being afraid of the dark was even more troublesome and terrible than the first time he said his first words, which were “Mama” , "Dada” and "A-a-aggie" which is the way Patrick that said, “Margy”, his big sister’s name.
That time, when Patrick said his first words, his Grandma Landry and Uncle Joel were there to listen to him, too, and that added to Patrick’s being afraid. But, to his surprise, after he said those words, everyone clapped, and said, “Hooray!” and that made Patrick feel so happy that he completely forgot about being afraid.
At another time, when Patrick''s Mom and Dad took him and his sister Margy to the zoo, they went into the elephant house and a huge elephant took a scoop of straw in his trunk and then dropped it over the top of fence where he stayed. The huge clump of straw almost dropped right on top of Patrick but Dad jumped in and lifted Patrick out of the elephant''s range just in time.
Then, one day when the family was at the park, a big dog tried to lick Patrick''s face and Patrick have some very unpleasant feelings then. But, even those feelings were not as bad as being afraid of the dark. When the big dog licked Patrick''s face all over and made Patrick very afraid, his Mom and Dad were there to save him. They quickly lead the dog away and Mom used a wipette to make Patrick feel okay again.
So, as long as Mom and Dad were always there to help, Patrick felt safe and secure in no time at all.
That is why this time, at 12 midnight on the 12th day of the 12th month, Patrick’s discovery about the dark was so amazing and worrisome since there were many things happening all at once. First, the dark was everywhere, and that was a strange and different experience for Patrick. Next, everything was completely quiet, and that was unlike the other times whenever he would wake up in the morning. Finally, Patrick''s night light wasn''t shining like it usually did. So, Patrick couldn’t think of any reason why he was awake at all, and that was very confusing.
Yes, when Patrick woke up at 12 midnight of that 12th day of the 12th month which was also officially morning, all he could see in his room was the dark, and there was no sun shining through his window like it usually did to wake him up each day. There weren''t any happy smells either drifting up into his room, as his Mom was cooking breakfast, and that was also something that would wake up Patrick, and make him feel happy and special.
So, even though having no real reason to wake up was really confusing, especially since he hadn’t heard anyone, like his big sister, Margy, calling him to say she would eat all his cereal if he didn’t wake up and come downstairs right away for breakfast, this time, when nothing had happened to wake Patrick up, and the only thing Patrick could see in his room was the dark, it made Patrick feel so terribly upset and afraid, that all he could do was cry.
At first, his bottom lip poked way out, then his two small eyebrows started to meet. Then, his whole face turned into a terrible frown. Finally Patrick cried out in a long, strong, "Boo-hoo-hoo." Of course, this terrible crying soon woke up Patrick''s big sister Margy whose bedroom was right next door to Patrick’s. Margy put on her robe, walked out into the darkened hallway, and opened Patrick''s door. Still yawning, she asked, "Patrick, you woke me up!" But, all Patrick could do was sit up in his bed, and point toward his window, and say, "Dark! Dark! Dark"! Then, he began to cry all over again.
Margy stood there for a moment, trying to think of something to say. She had learned from Mom and Dad that it was important to talk things out and communicate in order to solve problems, and get along with others.
And, since it was so dark, she slowly and carefully walked to Patrick''s bed, and sat down next to him. Then, she put her arm around Patrick''s shoulder, and in a very grown up five and a half year-old voice, said, "Patrick, don''t be afraid of the dark. The dark is something you sleep in -- like a nice warm blanket, or a soft, fluffy sleeping bag. If we didn''t have the dark, it sure would be hard to sleep. "
After hearing what Margy said, Patrick finally stopped crying. He turned, looked closely toward Margy, and he thought about what she said. It took just a little while, then Patrick decided it did make sense. He said to himself, "In the dark, it sure is a lot easier to sleep."
Then, he absolutely decided the dark was okay. He gave Margy a great big smile, even though she couldn’t quite see his smile in the dark. Then, Patrick wiped away his tears, quickly pulled his covers up close, just under his chin, and in no time at all, went happily back to sleep.
The best estimate of when that happened in fact, was at 12: 12 a.m. on the 12th day of the 12th month just before Patrick''s 2nd birthday.
Then, Margy walked back to her bedroom feeling very good that Patrick had understood and agreed with what she had said. She pulled her covers up just under her chin, and thought, "After all, isn''t that what big sisters are for? Why, if Patrick didn''t have a big sister, he would have to figure it out all by himself. Or, cry a lot longer, and wake up Mom and Dad." And Margy went quickly and happily back to sleep, too.
Only, what Margy hadn’t noticed as she returned to her room was that Mom and Dad were also returning to their room. It turns out that Patrick’s crying had made them wake up after all. Except, Mom and Dad were not at all upset with Patrick’s crying. The is because even though they had not been able to hear all that happened, they were feeling very happy and proud because they figured Margy and Patrick had worked together to solve a problem.
And, that is why when Mom and Dad went back to bed, and pulled their covers up close, they kissed each other good night again, and said, "Isn''t that what brothers and sisters are for?" and soon went peacefully back to sleep.
Then, during breakfast, at about 7:12 a.m. on the 12th day of the 12th month, Margy and Patrick happily told Mom and Dad everything that happened. After Mom and Dad heard everything, they felt even more happy and proud because of the way their children worked together, and solved a problem.
Mom and Dad also made sure that everyone in the family knew about it, too, and as you might expect, Patrick had an especially wonderful and marvelous two year-old birthday party, with family, friends, lots of yummy cake, and more than a dozen presents.
So now, whenever anyone, including Grandma Landry or Uncle Joel, asks Patrick, "Are you afraid of the dark?" Do you know what Patrick tells them? Of course, you know.
He tells them he isn’t afraid at all. He just points to a window, then takes a deep breath, and says in a very grown up two year-old voice, "Dark --- there --- night --- good."
Also, if Margy is there, she smiles and says, "The dark is something you sleep in -- like a nice warm blanket.”
And, if Mom and Dad are there, they smile very proudly, give each of their children a very big hug, with lots of kisses, and they all say , "Yes, the dark is something you sleep in, and you have nothing to fear about that at all.”
THE END
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I'm sorry for the formatting problems. I've addressed them many times. Make sure you put a complete line between your paragraphs and when you paste the story in, paste special, like I do "Paste and Match Style."
Ron