The Goodnight Parade of Dreams
Dash stays awake to discover the magical Goodnight Parade delivering dreams each night, joins the enchanting procession, and learns the perfect time for sleep and dreaming.
- 5 min read
Every night at exactly bedtime, something magical happened in Dash’s bedroom. But tonight would be the first time Dash actually stayed awake long enough to see it.
“Just five more minutes?” Dash asked, clutching his stuffed elephant, Trumpet.
“Alright,” yawned Mama. “But close your eyes and rest them.”
Dash squeezed his eyes shut tight. That’s when he heard it—a tiny toot-toot like the smallest trumpet in the world.
His eyes popped open.
There, marching across his nightstand, was the tiniest parade Dash had ever seen! Leading the way was a sleepy-looking lion no bigger than Dash’s thumb, wearing a sparkly purple cape and carrying a flag that said “DREAMS THIS WAY.”
“Welcome, welcome!” squeaked the lion, whose name tag read “Leonard the Dream Leader.” “Right on time! We’re the Goodnight Parade, and we’re here to deliver your dreams!”
Behind Leonard marched the most wonderful collection of creatures Dash had ever seen. There were yawning unicorns pulling tiny wagons filled with glowing bubbles. There were dancing penguins in pajamas juggling stars. There were drowsy dragons breathing soft, warm puffs of lavender-scented air.
“Where did you all come from?” Dash whispered, careful not to wake Mama down the hall.
“Why, from the Dream Factory, of course!” said a sleepy koala playing a gentle lullaby on a tiny harp. “We march through every night, delivering dreams to sleeping children.”
“But I’m not asleep,” said Dash.
“Hmm, that IS unusual,” said Leonard, scratching his fuzzy head. “Well, would you like to come along? We could use a Grand Marshal!”
Before Dash could answer, the koala handed him a star-tipped wand no bigger than a toothpick. The moment Dash touched it, he felt himself shrinking down, down, down until he was just the right size for the parade.
“All aboard!” called a turtle wearing a conductor’s hat, and Dash climbed onto a fluffy cloud-float shaped like a boat.
The parade began moving across Dash’s dresser, and oh, what wonders they passed! They marched by the Land of Forgotten Socks, where mismatched socks danced in pairs they’d never met before. They crossed the Bridge of Bedtime Stories, where characters from Dash’s favorite books waved as they passed.
“First stop,” announced Leonard, “the Garden of Gentle Dreams!”
The parade entered Dash’s toy box, which had transformed into a magnificent garden filled with flowers that hummed soft songs. Each flower held a different dream.
“This one’s about flying,” said a firefly, pointing to a blue flower. “This one’s about building the world’s tallest pancake tower. And this one—” the firefly giggled, “—is about a tap-dancing broccoli.”
“A tap-dancing broccoli?” Dash laughed.
“Dreams can be silly!” said Leonard. “That’s what makes them fun!”
A gentle rabbit with very long eyelashes approached carrying a basket. “Which dreams would you like tonight, Dash?”
Dash looked at all the glowing flowers. There were so many! Dreams about underwater adventures, dreams about racing with cheetahs, dreams about discovering chocolate rivers.
“Can I have them all?” Dash asked.
“One dream per night,” the rabbit said kindly. “But don’t worry—we come every single night. There’s always tomorrow.”
Dash thought carefully. His eyelids were starting to feel heavy, like warm, cozy blankets.
“I’d like… the flying dream, please.”
The rabbit plucked the blue flower and tucked it gently behind Dash’s ear. Immediately, Dash felt lighter, like he might float away at any moment.
“Excellent choice!” said Leonard. “Now, we must continue our parade. We have seven hundred and forty-three more children to visit tonight!”
The parade marched on, climbing up Dash’s bookshelf, which had become a magnificent mountain. At the very top, they could see the whole room—the night-light glowing like a tiny sun, the curtains swaying like gentle ghosts, and Dash’s bed looking like the most comfortable, inviting place in the entire universe.
“You know,” said Leonard, sitting beside Dash on the cloud-float, “the parade happens every single night. But most children are already asleep when we arrive. That’s actually perfect—it means we can sneak in their dreams without any trouble.”
“So I should be sleeping?” Dash asked, yawning so wide his jaw cracked.
“Well,” Leonard winked, “that would help the magic work better. Dreams like to visit sleeping minds. They’re shy, you see.”
A wise old owl wearing spectacles glided over. “The best dream-receivers,” she hooted softly, “are children who are peaceful, relaxed, and drifting in that wonderful space between awake and asleep.”
Dash nodded. He WAS feeling wonderfully peaceful. The parade’s music was soft and sweet, like Mama’s lullabies. The lavender dragon-breath smelled like Mama’s hugs. And his cloud-float felt exactly like his pillow.
“I think,” Dash yawned again, “I might be ready for bed now.”
“Splendid!” cheered the parade, but quietly, because everyone was quite sleepy now.
The cloud-float began drifting down, down, down from the bookshelf mountain, across the dresser, and landed right on Dash’s pillow. As Dash grew back to his normal size, the parade grew smaller and smaller, until they were twinkling like tiny stars.
“Will you come back tomorrow night?” Dash whispered, already mostly asleep.
“Every night!” promised Leonard, his voice sounding far away now. “The Goodnight Parade never misses a stop. Sweet dreams, Dash!”
Dash pulled Trumpet close and smiled. The blue flower’s magic was starting to work—he could feel the flying dream beginning, soft wings growing from his shoulders, wind gentle beneath his feet.
From very far away, he heard the parade’s instruments playing their goodnight song, and the last thing he saw before his eyes closed completely was the tiny flag waving:
“SWEET DREAMS THIS WAY.”
And they were. The sweetest dreams ever.
The End
Goodnight, little dreamers. The parade is coming soon.