Bedtime Stories
2020 Scholastics Art & Writing Awards
National Gold Medal
Illustration by Julia Cheng
Vignettes
- 月 yuè, moon.
- craters
- 天 tiān, sky
- typhoon
- 倒影 dào yǐng, reflection
- Shapeshifter
- 日 rì, sun
- supernova
- 生 shèng, life
- bedtime stories
1 | 月 yuè, moon
Long ago—when the sun god was still a young phoenix, and the skies woven from wisps of dragon beard, there lived a mortal girl named Chang’er. Her husband, like many old emperors, was obsessed with immortality, pleading with the gods for an elixir that could grant him eternal life. The potion was delivered into Chang’er’s hands—along with a warning not to drink it all, as only half the bottle was enough to turn a mortal into a god. Still, her curiosity grew, and she took one gulp, then another—and soon enough, the vial was empty. When the emperor found out, he chased poor Chang’er down in a fury. Fleeing for her life, she leapt from the pagoda, only to find herself drifting up towards the starry heavens. Up, up she went, far above the clouds, above even the palace of the gods, until the fates finally took pity and cast her to the lonesome moon. Here, she was to spend the rest of eternity.