Put to Bed

    A sat down to tell The Hippie a bedtime story.

    "Once upon a time there was a woman," I said.  "She had long, blonde hair.  She had beautiful blue eyes, that could turn people into animals.
   "One day she saw a prince.  When she looked at him, he turned into a rabbit."
    This is when The Hippie stopped me.  "No, Mom," she said.  "She could control her powers.  So, the prince DID NOT turn into a rabbit."
    "A chipmunk?" I asked.
    "No," The Hippie said.
    "A moose?"
    "No!" The Hippie said.
    "A cute duck?"
    "No."
    "An aardvark?"
    "What? No! No!"
    "A dolphin?" I finally whispered.
    "Yes.  Wait . . . no!  A panda."  She smiled sweetly as if she hadn't just yelled in my nice, motherly ear.  "The woman loved pandas."       
    Then, she finished the story that I'd started to put her to sleep with.
    "The woman took him home for a pet."  
    The story went on and on.   My eyes sagged peacefully.     
    "So, the panda and the weird animal woman, lived happily, ever after."
    Why is it that I always get tired during storytime?
    I almost snored for the peace of it all.  Such a good ending.
    "Did you like my story, Mama?" she asked after the panda and  the woman had gone on their long adventure.
    I nodded and curled up in her blanket.  She sang to me then and giggled.  "You're so easy to put to sleep," The Hippie said.
    I laughed and threw her pillow at her.