The Spider And The Whale

By Jay Sebastian

Wally was lost and a long way from home. And so, it seemed, was Sam.

But how could a Spider, as small as he was, possibly help a whale?

It seemed...impossible.

But nothing, they will learn, is hard as you imagine, when you persevere and never give up.

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For the Parents...

The Spider And The Whale is a children's book, but, more importantly, it is also full of metaphor. It is a parable of hope, friendship, self-respect and a growing awareness of spirituality and its connection with all things.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jay Sebastian
• Release date: Mar 22, 2016
• ISBN: 9781524201746

Jay Sebastian

Jay Sebastian lives in Victoria, Australia and writes Young Children's Fiction. Apart from Fantasy and Board Games, he also enjoys Pirates, Ninjas, Wizards, Robots, Aliens and Dinosaurs, or any combination of the above, but not necessarily in that order. On a more serious note, Jay believes that it's never too early to foster a sense of spiritual connection in our young; he hopes that this publication - The Spider And The Whale - goes some way towards achieving that.

Book preview

CHAPTER ONE

- FAR FROM HOME -

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Up above, the moon shone bright in a twinkling sky; it looked like the Gods had grabbed a fat fistful of stars and thrown them at will, across a black velvet sheet.

Maybe they’d hedged bets, debating how the universe might look, once created. But perhaps, amidst those ancient talks, some had just lost patience, casting their blueprints aside and leaving the rest to chance, fate, or some other makeshift plan.

Sam Spider looked up and stared at this picture of random glory, its brilliance mirrored like liquid neon, across his eight shiny eyes. - Right now he felt like one of those stars too: floating in the inky black, far away from home and just as scattered.

He guessed now, looking over at this huge dark mass, beached and upside-down on the sand, that it felt equally out of place...whatever ‘it’ was. 

It’s ok you know said the shape, "there’s no need to worry; I won’t hurt you, even if I could move"

With this, the dark mountain sighed and visibly slumped its shoulders.

Okaaaay... said Sam. - "Did you just... talk to me?" 

Well it replied, "I’ll answer that question like this...

...Once, long ago, I heard something speak. There were creatures, you see, out fishing in the waves. There was a chief figure amongst them – the elder of the group, I suppose. It spoke to another; a younger one, sitting in the boat - the one who was watching him work – and he told him this:

- If you listen to the sea, or to the land, it will talk back ; it will tell you of its joys, of its sorrows; its deepest stories and secrets..."

So said Sam... "You’re now the land? - You’re the mountain, talking back to me?"

Well it replied, "to you down there I may look like a mountain, but I’m livelier than that ... usually...

- But not in my current state..."

At this, Wally the Whale smiled at Sam, (as best he could, given that he was stuck on a beach), and his great fins flicked around in all directions. Sam the Spider watched them move, carving up unusual patterns in the sand.

And so it was that Sam met Wally, both of them marooned together, on the beach - the Spider and the Whale.

CHAPTER TWO

- HELP IS WHERE THE HEART IS -

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Sam felt sad for Wally....he wanted to help.

But how did he get here, the Spider thought, and how long has he been lying there, helpless?

More urgently, how long would he stay there without any aid, and was the Whale thirsty?

So many questions...

Sam knew about the seawater; that he himself could not drink it - it was just too salty...but he wasn’t sure about Whales...maybe this Whale was different...? If not, maybe those fine teeth of his could sift out the sodium, just like they did with the krill?

But, if Wally was thirsty (and probably hot too) - how would Sam even collect enough water to give him a proper drink?

What’s more, how on earth would he even begin to get him off the beach??

There was a lot to think about...

Heaven knows, Sam was still busy trying to figure out how he’d got here himself.

One summer night, he’d been camping out in his parents back yard, curled up snug in a rolled up leaf (they made great sleeping bags), without a care in the world. Then, somehow, he’d woken up (still in the leaf) and sailing down a torrential stream, the wind and the rain swirling around him. The stream fed into a lake and the lake to the sea.

So, here he was, miles from home, washed