Barnaby pressed his nose against the cool, frosty windowpane. The forest path outside was completely empty. He dropped his favorite wooden honey-dipper on the floor with a loud clack. "Grandma is too far away," he whispered to the quiet room.
He dragged a heavy wooden stool to the highest shelf to reach his dusty paintbox. Outside, a big, silvery moon peeked through the oak leaves. Barnaby dipped his brush into the bright yellow paint. He splashed a thick, messy circle right in the middle of his paper.
The yellow paint dripped across the page, so he blew gently until it dried into a bumpy crust. He folded the picture into a giant blue envelope. A weird, gluey taste lingered on his tongue as he licked the sticky edge. Now he just needed to send it in the mail.
Barnaby marched to the red mailbox at the edge of the woods. He was too short to reach the shiny metal slot, so he stacked three prickly pinecones to stand on. Wobbling on his tiptoes, he shoved the bulky blue envelope inside. The mailbox snapped shut with a loud CLANG, sending a flock of black crows into the sky.
For three nights, he sat on his front porch in a scratchy wool blanket, watching the real moon. He kicked a loose rock into the dirt. Just as he wondered if his painting was lost, a tiny green mail-bird fluttered down. It dropped a square package right into his lap.
He tore open the brown paper, instantly smelling the sharp scent of Grandma's favorite peppermint tea. Inside was a painted picture of a little bear under that exact same bumpy yellow moon, with "I see it too!" written at the bottom. Barnaby pinned the picture to his bedroom wall, grinning out at the glowing night sky.