Nobody in the whole world knows as many stories as the Sandman. You too will probably have heard many stories about him. He comes to all the sweet little children when they are asleep and makes sure they have the most wonderful adventures in their dreams. He does this by turning his magic umbrella above your head. But if you have been naughty, Sandman turns his other umbrella around. This one has nothing on it and you don’t dream all night. It feels strange when you wake up in the morning.
Every day Sandman also goes to see a little boy. This little boy is called Hjalmar. Every day the Sandman tells a different story to Hjalmar.
On the first day, it was a Monday, the Sandman transforms Hjalmar’s bedroom into a beautiful garden with the most beautiful trees and plants. While Hjalmar is enjoying all this, a beep comes from his desk drawer. There is his notebook, but all the letters are crooked. The Sandman teaches the letters to stand up straight. But when Hjalmar wakes up the next morning, they are unfortunately just as crooked as before.
On Tuesday evening, The Sandman lifts Hjalmar into the large painting hanging on the wall. He listens to the birds singing, looks at the castles and waves to the princesses. It’s as if he has landed in a fairy tale. Hjalmar wakes up in the morning feeling satisfied.
On the third night, it is raining very hard outside. When the Sandman opens the windows, the water is up to the windowsill. So he takes Hjalmar with him on a big boat. They sail across the rough sea and Hjalmar is amazed. At one point, a stork lands on the boat. Can I come along for a ride? “My wings are so tired.” says the animal. He is put with the ducks, geese and chickens and starts telling stories about Africa. The other animals don’t understand him and laugh at him. Hjalmar feels sorry for him and releases the stork. He then wakes up in his own bed and thinks back to the beautiful things he has seen.
On Thursday night, Hjalmar has a very special adventure planned by The Sandman. He gets to attend the wedding of two little mice! The Sandman shrinks Hjalmar so he fits into the little mouse hole. Here Hjalmar experiences the most beautiful wedding he has ever been to. For dessert, there’s a pea with the names of the bride and groom. Hjalmar has never seen anything so special.
The following night, the sandman tells the story of how grownups who have done something wrong often ask him if he can’t give them nicer dreams. They would like to pay for this, but the Sandman is not for sale. Afterwards, Hjalmar is taken to a wedding once again by the ‘The Sandman’. This time his sister’s two dolls are getting married. Hjalmar has seen this before, but it’s still a nice wedding to attend.
On Saturdays, Hjalmar looks forward to the visit of the ‘The Sandman’. But today, the Sandman has no time for a story. He tells us that the whole world needs cleaning, because tomorrow is Sunday. Most of the work is done by cleaning all the stars. Then the portrait of Hjalmar’s great-grandfather interferes with the visit. He thinks that The Sandman shouldn’t tell his great-grandson nonsense. Stars can’t be polished, can they? Hjalmar wakes up a bit confused.
On the seventh night, the Sandman has thought of something special for Hjalmar: “I want to show you my brother,” he says. He’s also called The Sandman, but he only knows two stories. One is the most beautiful story in the world, and the other is the most horrible story there is. The Sandman lifts up Hjalmar and points to his brother. “People also call him Death. But he’s not as scary as he is sometimes described.” Hjalmar looks and sees that Death is wearing a beautiful velvet cape and is riding a horse. Death wants to see everyone’s report cards. If your report is good, you can get on the horse and hear the wonderful story. If your report is bad, you have to ride in the back and listen to the horrible story. Hjalmar thinks for a moment and then says: “I’m not afraid of Death.” “You don’t have to be afraid, dear boy, just make sure you have a good report card,” answers The Sandman.
