The Shadow Monster with Wusel Ears

Evening had come to the workshop again. Flauschi put yesterday’s lantern safely on the clear table. Its electric light shone warmly through the cover. Paper and fabric were on the shelf, and the path to the craft basket stayed clear. There were thirteen days until Halloween.

A plain canvas stood against the wall in a firm wooden frame. Puschel wanted to see whether his little paw shadow could dance on it too. He stepped between the light and the canvas.

Suddenly, two enormous ears appeared there.

Puschel stopped. ‘Flauschi. There’s a shadow monster.’

Flauschi stayed beside the table, outside the path of the light. ‘It has rather wuselly ears. Would you like a closer look, or shall we stop?’

‘Let’s look first,’ Puschel said quietly. He lifted a paw. The big dark shape lifted its paw too.

Puschel waved. The shadow waved back.

‘Oh,’ he said. ‘The monster knows my greeting.’

He lowered his paw. The dark paw went down as well. Now Puschel had to giggle. ‘And it always waits for me!’

‘That’s your shadow,’ Flauschi explained. ‘Your body blocks some of the light. Behind you, less light reaches the canvas. That’s where we see the dark shape.’

Puschel looked at the lantern, then back at the canvas. ‘But I’m not that enormous.’

‘Let’s try changing the distance. The lantern stays where it is. Walk slowly a little closer to the canvas. I’ll check that your path is clear.’

Puschel walked forwards without touching the canvas. His shadow grew smaller. Its ears looked much less enormous now.

‘It’s shrinking!’ he called. Then he looked at his tummy. ‘Luckily, I’m not.’

Flauschi laughed. ‘You stay the same size. Only your shadow changes.’

Now Puschel turned around and carefully walked a little closer to the light again. He stopped well before the table. His dark shape grew larger on the canvas again.

‘A big greeting,’ he said, waving. Then he walked towards the canvas again. ‘And a little greeting.’

Flauschi waved to him from her place. ‘Both are friendly.’

Puschel wanted to shake his shadow’s paw. He held his paw in front of the canvas without pushing against it. Of course, no second paw came out.

‘Waving is enough to say hello,’ he decided. ‘That one hasn’t got a paw of its own.’

After a while, Puschel lowered his arm. ‘Now I’d like ordinary light again.’

Flauschi made the workshop brighter. The shadow was hardly visible now. She switched off the lantern.

‘We can explain it before we try it at our party,’ she said. ‘Anyone who likes can wave. Anyone who doesn’t can watch or take a break.’

Puschel nodded. ‘And if anyone spots a shadow monster, we’ll look for the wusel ears first.’