FROZEN MOON
 
 
 


The day the moon stood still

There was a time when the moon that circled our planet stopped moving. In the cold plains of the Arctic, three different families would witness this phenomena. First, there were the humans. More specifically, it was a family of native Aleuts that inhabited the area. Then there was a traveling herd of caribou that looked up at the night sky and saw the still moon. Lastly, a wolf clan that was sleeping nearby were in awe of the spectacle.

It was snowing, but it did not distract the Aleutian people, the caribou and the wolves from seeing this never-before-seen event. The moon had simply stopped in its trajectory path around Earth, it did not move from where it was. It was frozen in place. It hung above in the Arctic sky. For the Aleuts, they did not know what this may bring. They simply looked at it for long whiles during their daily activities. They went about their business, but never forgot about the sight that was brought to them so unexpectedly.

The herd of caribou nestled themselves together, trying to keep the bitter cold from winning them over. After all, they faced the longest winters and some of the harshest living conditions. This herd has traveled great distances in a short amount of time, but they did not know that their journey would lead them to such an event. They just happened to be in the right place at the right time. They adapted to the cold quickly, having to endure bothersome insects during the summer months.

However, this group of caribou was lucky enough to forage for food under the snow. The youngest member of the group, a male calf, stared at the moon longer than anyone else in his family. While everybody was continuously searching for something to eat, this calf was more intent on keeping his eyes to the sky. Would that mean that the night sky would be up forever? Would they ever see the sun again? It was very hard to tell. No matter how long this will go on for, there is no doubt that the moon without motion caught every living thing's attention.

The wolf clan that lived nearby were all asleep when the phenomena occurred. When one of the pack's leaders became the first to wake up, he howled out. Suddenly, all the wolves awoke from their slumber and gazed at the surprise presented to them. Like the snow on an undisturbed tree, the moon had stood still. No movement. No sign of action. Every wolf started to howl into the darkened sky. Their echoes could be heard for miles. The Aleuts and the caribou could even hear their cries, but they focused so much on the moon, they were not distracted at all.

The wolves bunched themselves together and headed for the lake. All of them stood by the water, which was close to becoming ice. There, the moon's reflection could be seen on the water's surface. The wolves had seen the moon pass over the lake and its reflection on the water many times before. Every time that happened, they enjoyed every second of it. It was an amazing sight to behold. Now that the moon had stopped directly over the lake, they can view that amazing sight for a much longer period of time.

For an entire day, the natives of this land in the Arctic experienced nighttime to the fullest. Time did not stop, though. Everyone still carried out their everyday routines...with an eye at the sky. In a place where not many unexpected events take place, seeing such wonder was a welcome change to all who witnessed it. Suddenly, the moon mysteriously began to move again and continued its duty of circling around our planet once more. The Aleuts went back to their customs, the caribou progressed more in their travels, and the wolves moved away from the lake and back to their territory.

Every family was glad to know they had gotten a break from their usual everyday lifestyle, a chance to see something interesting for a change. But no one understood why the moon stopped all of a sudden. Was it growing weary of simply just completing its orbit around Earth over and over? Did it need a rest? The world may never know the reason.