Bao's Moon Adventure

In a bamboo forest full of rustling leaves, Bao the giant panda looked up at the sky every night. The moon hung there, glowing and round, like a giant dumpling. Bao’s eyes sparkled as he whispered to himself, “I want to visit the moon.” But how could a panda get to the moon? Bao scratched his furry head. “I’m not a bird, so I can’t fly. I’m not a rocket, so I can’t zoom.” He sighed and nibbled on some bamboo. The next morning, Bao had an idea. He waddled over to his clever friend, Mei the red panda. Mei was small but full of bright ideas. “Mei, how can I reach the moon?” Bao asked. Mei wiggled her striped tail and thought for a moment. “We’ll build a bamboo rocket!” she said. Bao clapped his paws. “Brilliant!” Together, they gathered the tallest, sturdiest bamboo stalks. Bao tied them together with vines, while Mei filled the rocket with soft moss for a seat.

“But how will we launch it?” Bao wondered. Mei pointed to the biggest hill in the forest. “We’ll roll it to the top and let it swoosh down!” With lots of huffing and puffing, Bao and Mei pushed their bamboo rocket up the hill. They climbed in, and Mei counted down, “Three, two, one… SWOOSH!” The rocket zoomed down the hill, faster and faster, and… WHOOSH! It launched into the starry sky. Bao laughed and held on tight. When they reached the moon, Bao stepped out. The ground felt soft and powdery, like sugar. “It’s beautiful!” he said, looking back at Earth. “It’s just like the pictures in the stars.” After their moon adventure, Bao and Mei zoomed back home. From that day on, whenever Bao looked at the moon, he smiled and said, “I went there!”