The Octopus in the Attic
On the same day, but years apart, two wondrous beings came into the world: Julia, a tiny baby that would fit in the palm of your hand, and Sandy, an even tinier octopus. One lived in a house, one in the ocean, but both loved adventures, and both would come to find a home at the library.
Julia, like most inquisitive people, loved to read and learn. She would walk, talk, skate, and dance, all with a book pressed close to her face. When she wasn’t reading she was imagining stories, wonders were all around her! When she was old enough, she volunteered at her favorite tiny, magical Library. Each day, she’d fill her book bag up to the brim and then head to the beach to read. Every book took her to a new world and a new adventure!
Sandy also liked an adventure, her quests took her to distant parts of the ocean. She was crafty, confident, and fascinated by the world around her. She searched the sea floor for anything that piqued her interest; shells, sea glass, creatures, or a forest of seaweed. Sandy loved the way the seaweed tasted and felt against her tentacles, and was fascinated by the beautiful swirling design she made while moving through the green. She ventured farther and farther until she eventually found herself by the ocean's edge. She instinctively changed color and texture to blend into the rocks on the shore; she poked her eyes above the water’s surface and took in as much as she could of the beings standing on the beach while half above and half below the water. In that instant, she was living in two worlds.
Suddenly, BLOOP, Sandy was gently scooped up by a small hand, and Julia and Sandy were eye to eye. "It's a harlequin octopus!", Julia exclaimed delightedly. She had read everything she could get her hands on about octopuses and couldn’t believe her luck seeing one in person! Sandy wasn’t quite sure what Julia was but could tell she was kind.
Julia held the tiny creature for a moment, then returned it to the water. She marveled at the way that the octopus could do eight things at once. They became fast friends and would meet by the water’s edge regularly, Julia would read to Sandy and in turn, Sandy would show her newest treasure to Julia.
During one of their visits the strangest thing happened: the octopus started moving in a new way, arms bent at angles instead of swirls, she was writing letters in the sand, the octopus could spell! “F-R-I-E-N-D” Julia and Sandy were now able to have conversations, fabulous!! They shared their favorite stories and described their favorite places. Sandy wanted to know more, she wanted to use all of her senses in each of her arms to experience as much as possible So, after a few weeks of bringing books to the seashore, Julia had an idea. She packed up the wee cephalopod in a fish bowl and headed off to a very special place. Julia climbed the stone stairs, carefully holding the fish bowl and passed through enormous doors of the library. Sandy was thrilled, she could learn about any topic, read stories and meet more people.
One evening Sandy looked up and noticed a large glass ceiling area above where they read. The glass wasn’t quite clear, Sandy needed to know what was above the glass. She walked across the floor and stealthily climbed the square spiral stair. She found her way to the third floor where she saw that the air conditioner had been leaking a salty brine and created a perfect fish tank in one of the glass panels. She curled into the water and settled in, all three of her hearts were happy. The octopus decided to stay, she gathered some books from the mystery section and began reading. Each night she would climb down to gather more to read.
Sandy thrived, during the day, when she wasn’t helping people find a book or explaining the wonders of the sea, you would find her engrossed with a different book in each arm. As the days would become dark, Sandy would dream, her body would put on a show, it would change colors, her arms would dance, her suckers would contract, Julia was amazed each time she witnessed this.
When the librarians came in for work one day, they noticed water leaking from the ceiling. Joe, the builder, was called to check things out. Just as he entered, one of the glass panels cracked and more water poured down from the ceiling. Whoosh, Joe sprinted up the stairs to find the source. He opened the door and found the flooded panel and a beautiful octopus dreaming of something blue and green and purple.
He built a new tank on the main floor of the building kept Sandy safe . The cracks in the ceiling grew larger and Joe took down the glass revealing the most beautiful balcony and windows above flooded the library with light. With the glass gone you also saw the original bookcases and decorative ceiling from over a century ago . People would enter, look up to the sky to marvel at the trees, sky, and clouds.
Sandy was thrilled with her new light filled home! She loved being able to warmly greet everyone that came in, share adventures with Julia, and of course learn all of the time!
Everyone that entered understood through Sandy, the magic of the endless knowledge held in a library, and how to share your world with others. and the beauty all around us.
