Posted on by JenniferShelby · 2 Comments

a clutter of sailing spiders

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The Captain kicked at the ground and grumbled to himself. His crew made him furious. They were lazy and clumsy and ruined his best sails. He came across a spider and watched it for a while. His anger ebbed as he marveled how the spider rushed onto a web with ease to catch its prey, despite it flapping in the wind. An idea occurred to the Captain.

The next day the harbour hummed with strange tales of a mad sea captain who replaced his entire crew, save the cook and the cabin boy, with a clutter of spiders. No one knew what to think as they watched the ship sail out to sea with flawless symmetry, each sail just so and the rigging just right.

Posted on by JenniferShelby

secret messages

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The sunlight winked upon the water’s surface, sending secret messages to the bottom of the sea. There the mermaids scooped them up in long lost buckets and relayed them to whom they belonged. Who that is, I cannot say, but I’ve always dreamt of hidden sea beasts, impossible and mythical, whose deep sea movements become the waves that greet us on the shore.

Posted on by JenniferShelby

waiting

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Her attention remained on the edge of the water, waiting. Every day at dusk she did this, always with the faint concern her friend would not materialize; that maybe she’d dreamt her up after all. She spied a flash of pink climbing down the rocks and the mermaid child grinned. Her human friend was here.