How do we know the sun will come back?

A little boy and his grandmother sat outside their house in front of the lake to watch the sunset, one evening. The sky was bright with a pink and orange and red glow.

The sun sank lower and lower towards the hills behind the lake.

“Where is the sun going, grandmother?” asked the little boy.

“The sun is going behind the hills until tomorrow, when he will come back up in the east,” replied the grandmother.

They watched as the sun disappeared below the horizon. A gentle, cool breeze blew in over them from the lake.

“How do we know the sun will come back?” asked the little boy. “I can’t see him anymore.”

“We can’t see him now, but the clouds can,” replied the grandmother. She pointed up to the big, puffy clouds over the hills. They were still blazing with pink light from the sunset.

But the sun began to set even lower, and eventually even the clouds turned into a misty grey.

“How do we know the sun will come back?” asked the little boy. “The clouds can’t see him anymore.”

“We can’t see him now, and the clouds can’t see him now. But the moon can,” replied the grandmother. She pointed to the big, round moon hanging low over the lake. It was shining brightly with the reflection of the sun.

But after a little while, even the moon sank lower and lower until it, too, was behind the hills.

“How do we know the sun will come back?” asked the little boy. “The moon can’t see him anymore.”

“We can’t see him now, and the clouds can’t see him now, and the moon has gone too. But the sun has promised us he will come back. And tomorrow, you’ll wake up early in the morning when he shines brightly in your window,” replied the grandmother.