Mermaids?

Irene often swam in the ocean just as the sun would begin to set. Her parents did not like her to swim alone, so she would invite her friend Ann to join her. The two girls loved how the sun looked as if it touched the ocean right as it set for the evening. There seemed to be something magical about the world at that time of day.

One evening, as the girls were swimming and watching the sun begin to set, they heard a large splash. They both turned and thought they saw the tail of a huge fish dip below the water. Ann told Irene the scales looked as if they had all the colors of the rainbow. Irene assured Ann it was probably just the setting sun playing tricks on her eyes, but she too had seen something in the water.

The next night, the girls were especially watchful as the sun began to set, but this time they were both watching the water rather than the quickly setting sun.

Splash! They both heard the noise at the same time. Imagine their surprise when they turned and there in the water was a girl who was half fish and half girl. She was, in fact, a mermaid. Ann and Irene were so stunned, they couldn’t even think of what to say. The mermaid flipped her tail and made water splash on both the girls. She smiled and then swam away.

Night after night, the two girls returned to the ocean, always at sunset, always hoping to catch a glimpse of the mermaid they both knew they had seen. They told their parents, but no one believed them. No matter how many times they went back to the ocean, the mermaid never returned, and after awhile both girls began to believe they had dreamed the entire thing.

As the girls grew older, they had two daughters of their own. The daughters became best friends and loved to swim in the ocean right as the sun was setting. The two girls ran home one night to tell their mothers a most unusual story. They claimed they had seen a mermaid swimming in the ocean. Imagine the girls’ surprise when their mothers believed them!