“Mom, will you play the pretty music again?” asked ten-year-old Roy as soon as he was out of bed.
“Yes, honey, I will.” She turned on more of the classical music that Roy had insisted on listening to yesterday.
“It was a long trip this time,” said Roy.
“What do you mean?” asked his mother as she wiped a powdery, glistening substance from his face.
Roy’s eyes shone. “The music tells me which stars to visit at night.” Roy saw the disbelief on his mother’s face.
“It’s true, Mom. There’s stardust on your fingers.”
Roy’s mother looked at her hands, rubbing her fingers together. She looked at Roy.
“How do you do it? How do you visit stars?!”
“It’s easy. You listen to music during the day and then hear it from certain stars at night. You look at the stars until you can’t hear the crickets or the wind. Then, you’ll hear the music from the stars. Sometimes, it sounds like music from a thousand stars! That’s when you go. Try it, Mom, you have to!”
“I-I’ll try. We’ll listen to the music today, and then I’ll try to hear a star tonight.”
That night, Roy went to his room and looked out the open window. His mother stood beside him. He felt unable to pick a favorite, the Star of Unborn Creatures who lived in harmony, or the one holding the music for every song people will write. He’d spent the entire night on the Star of All Toys. Even better was that he could return to the stars if he liked.
There! Roy thought there were a few high-pitched notes, but he still heard the wind. Roy listened and looked again. The lovely notes sounded clear as the wind died down.
“Do you hear the star, Mom?”
“Yes, Roy! I think I do!”
Roy stretched up to the tips of his toes. He looked and listened. The star was closer now. Excited, Roy felt himself lifted off his toes, and he leaned toward the open window.
It was then Roy saw his mother standing on the ground.
“Mom!”
Roy tried to reach down for her hand.
“Go, Roy, Go! I can’t.”
Roy felt sad when his mother wiped tears from her eyes. He tried to go back, but the star trip had already begun.
Roy looked up at the nearest star. As he glided high above the earth, sparkles of light shone from his body. Roy arrived and landed on the surface. The music played on. As he listened to the delightful notes, Roy peered around him.
