Once upon a time in a small village called Sunrise Savannah, where the sun rose so brightly every morning that even the chickens only crowed after the second wake-up call. Here lived Kofi, a boy with a smile bigger than his stomach when it came to sweets.
One morning, when the fog still lay like cotton over the fields, Kofi sat under the huge Baobab Tree, which had stood for centuries and had seen everything – except maybe a good joke.
“Kofi," cooed a deep, grumbling voice. “You look like you just ate a whole pineapple."
Kofi flinched. It was Aunt Nala, his grandmother, who actually wasn’t here but only appeared in a dream because she always told him: “Dreams are like seeds, my son. Some grow, others turn into weeds."
“Aunt Nala!" called Kofi, wiping crumbs from his mouth. “I didn’t eat anything! I was just... thinking."
“Thinking is good," said the voice of the Baobab Tree suddenly, which silenced all the birds. “But thinking is also tiring. It’s better to do something. For example... save a frog."
Kofi looked up confused. “A frog? Why?"
“Because this frog believes he can eat the moon," the tree replied dryly. “And if he does, the night will be much brighter than we want. The night moths will dazzle."
At that moment, a loud splash! was heard from the nearby pond. A small, green frog with glasses (which he had made from two leaves) jumped onto a stone and shouted:
“Today is the day! Today I eat the moon! And then the sunrise! Then I will be the ruler of all lights!"
Kofi giggled. “The moon is huge, Frodo!"
“Frodo?" asked the frog indignantly. “My name is Felix the Fearless! And size is just a matter of perspective. If I jump far enough, the moon is as small as a cheese ball!"
“A cheese ball?" repeated Kofi, laughing. “But Felix, the moon is thousands of kilometers away!"
“Then I just have to jump further," muttered Felix, preparing to jump. His legs tensed like springs.
“Wait!" called Kofi. “If you want to eat the moon, you first have to know how it tastes. Have you ever tried?"
Felix paused. “Um... no. But I think it tastes like... milk and stardust."
“Or like cold water and dirt," said Kofi. “Do you really want to eat dirt?"
Felix looked skeptically at the pond. “Hmm. Maybe I should first test if the moon is even edible."
Just at that moment, an old vulture named Gustav appeared, who had been trying for years to read a newspaper but always just ate the pages.
“Listen to me, little frog," said Gustav with his hoarse voice. “I have seen the moon many times. It is hard. Very hard. Like a stone. If you bite it, your teeth will break."
“Stone?" asked Felix in horror. “But I thought it was made of cheese!"
“No," said Kofi. “It’s made of rock. And it’s very far away. You would have to jump forever."
Felix sighed deeply. “So... no moon cheese ball?"
“Unfortunately not," said Kofi, patting him on the back. “But I know something better. Come with me, I’ll show you the biggest water lily carpet in the world. There are flies there that taste like little donuts."
Felix’s eyes lit up. “Donuts? Really?"
“Promise," said Kofi. “And Aunt Nala says donuts are better than moons."
The frog nodded seriously. “Then let’s go. But don’t forget: When you see the moon, tell it to hurry up. I’ll be back soon."
Kofi laughed loudly. “Don’t worry, Felix. The moon has time."
And so the boy, the frog, and the old vulture set off, while the Baobab Tree hummed contentedly: “Well done, Kofi. Sometimes the best thing you can do is stop someone from eating the moon."
(To be continued in Part 2...)