When the sky turns dark and the moon appears in the sky instead of the sun, night begins. When the moon looks like a ball, it is full. It is said that when there is a full moon, strange things happen.
It is as if the moon had a special, magical power. Some people can’t sleep, others have particularly vivid dreams and are then sleepwalking, and others wake up from their sleep.
Even some animals behave differently. For example, wolves howl at the moon, and squirrels and badgers board up their burrows so that the strong moonlight does not shine into them.
Once, when there was a full moon, something strange happened in the pine forest. A fox named Knox lived there. Her den was close to a large tree. She was a lively fox. She roamed the forest all day long, coming up with all kinds of adventures. In the evening, however, she loved to snuggle into her bed, close her eyes, and let herself have sweet dreams. She knew that if she slept well, she would have enough energy for the next day. But when the moon rose in the sky and was full, Knox the fox couldn’t sleep.
“Oh dear. Why can’t I sleep? My eyes are red, and my back hurts from tossing and turning,” lamented the fox. Finally, she got out of her bed. She looked up at the sky at the huge glowing ball. The full moon. “Ah, now I understand. Now I know why I can’t sleep.”
As soon as she said that, something rustled beside her. A small bear climbed out from behind a bush next to her. His eyes were closed, he didn’t notice the fox at all, and he quickly trotted straight ahead.
There was something strange about him. The fox watched the bear for a moment and then it dawned on her.
“He was sleepwalking. He thinks he’s asleep, but he’s walking around the forest. I have to wake him up. Who knows what would happen otherwise,” thought Knox the fox, and she ran after the bear.
When she caught up with him, she trotted alongside him and tried to call out to him. “Bear, hello!!! Wake up!!!” But the bear marched briskly on into the forest. He didn’t hear the fox at all. Fortunately, clever Knox had an idea. She ran ahead of the bear. She ran to a stream in the forest. She collected as much cold water as she could in her paws and then ran back quickly to catch up with the bear. When she was right in front of him, she splashed the water from the stream on him and waited to see if it would work. The bear stopped, shook himself, looked around, and didn’t understand what was happening.
“What happened? Why am I wet? And where am I? Why am I not in my den?” he asked the fox in amazement.
“You were sleepwalking. You thought you were sleeping, but you were walking around the forest. I couldn’t wake you up, so I splashed you with water from the stream. I’m sorry, but there was no other way. Look at the moon. See? It’s a full moon. That’s why these things happen. Full moon nights are different. Magical. That’s why you were sleepwalking,” explained the fox.
“And why aren’t you sleeping, Knox? What are you doing in the forest at night?” asked the still surprised bear.
“I couldn’t sleep. Also because of the full moon. So I left my den to get some fresh air, and you walked past me. When I saw you, I immediately realized that something was wrong. So I figured out how to wake you up so that you wouldn’t wander off somewhere far away or get into trouble,” continued the fox.
“Thank you so much, Knox” said the bear. Then they returned home together. Each to their own bed. Knox the fox was so tired after such an adventure that she fell asleep immediately, even though it was still a full moon.
When the round, bright moon reappeared in the sky some time later, the fox and the bear met in a meadow near the forest. They lay down in the grass and watched the beautiful glow of the full moon. And they wondered about its magical power.
