An example book · Storytime

The Sea Needed a Castle Too

The sun was warm and the sea was sparkly. Freya carried her red bucket. Mum carried the spades. Squish, squish, squish went their toes in the sand.

"Let's build the biggest sandcastle ever!" Freya patted towers. Mum smoothed walls. Up, up, up the castle grew.

Freya dug a deep moat all the way around. Splosh! The water rushed in and filled it right up.

The top tower was patted extra flat, like a king's hat. "It's perfect," said Mum, wiping sand off her glasses.

Under a rock, two tiny eyes on stalks peeked out. A little crab waved its claws hello.

"I'm going to call you Pinchy," whispered Freya, with her best gap-toothed smile.

Pinchy scuttled this way, then that way, sideways like a tiny dancer. Freya giggled every time.

After a while, Pinchy waved goodbye and scuttled back under his rock. "Bye, Pinchy!" called Freya.

Up on the sea wall, two strawberry ice creams melted fast in the sun. Drip, drip, drip — right down Freya's arm! "I'm a strawberry!" she laughed.

But their sandcastle was gone. Only smooth sand and soft little waves, swish, swish, swish.

Mum watched Freya, waiting for tears. But Freya just smiled her gap-toothed smile.

"It's okay, Mum," she said. "The sea needed a castle too." Mum squeezed her hand.

They walked home with sandy feet and sticky arms, happy and tired in the late sun.

Freya looked back one more time, at the waves rolling gently over the sea's very own castle, hidden just for a little while.

The Sea Needed a Castle Too

Storytime

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