The Story of Sun and Saturn

by Gina Fuller

Once upon a time, in a galaxy far, far away, Saturn was sitting all alone in the galaxy sandbox, as usual, molding a sand castle just as dull as herself.

“Why can’t I for once just make a decent sand castle?” she thought to herself as she was glancing at the intricate ones being made all around her. “I wish my sand castle could look as beautiful as everyone else’s.”

As Saturn was admiring everyone else’s creations but her own, Sun was making her way to the galaxy sandbox. Sun was new to this galaxy and she didn’t know anybody yet, so she was looking for someone to play with.

Then, Castor and Pollux, the most mischievous stars in the entire galaxy, went up to Saturn and said some pretty terrible things to her.

“Your sand castle is ugly, just like you! Who would ever want to be friends with somebody having a sand castle looking like that!” they said in unison.

Then, the obnoxious twins knocked over Saturn’s sand castle and began laughing like a pack of wild hyenas while stomping all over it.

Sun witnessed all this, and just as Saturn was about to break down in tears, Sun came to the rescue.

Sun said to those rude twins, “I am the brightest star in the whole entire universe, so you had best leave that planet alone!”

Castor and Pollux stopped laughing when Sun said this and got really, really scared, so they ran away, leaving Saturn all alone in tears.

“Why is everybody so mean to me?” cried Saturn. “I only want to build a sand castle as beautiful as everyone else’s! It’s just not fair!”

Sun just simply smiled, then got down on her knees and began playing around with the sand until into what appeared to be a sand castle, but not quite.

Much to Saturn’s surprise, it looked exactly identical to the one she had just made right before Castor and Pollux had come and stomped all over it.

Sun looked at Saturn and smiled, “I think your castle is beautiful.”

And so, was the beginning of a most wondrous friendship. Sun and Saturn did everything together and became the very best of friends. They were inseparable. It was as though they had known each other since the very beginning of time.

They even entered the Annual Universe Sand Castle Building Contest, in which stars and planets from various different galaxies came to either attend as a spectator or participate as a contestant.

Sun and Saturn placed first, which resulted in them beating out Alpha Centauri, who had been winning the last ten billion light years straight. And best of all, Castor and Pollux had stopped saying all those mean things to Saturn. For the first time in her life, Saturn could just smile and say that she was truly happy.

And it was apparent too, because stars and planets that would have otherwise avoided Saturn, actually came up to her and took the time to get to know her for the truly wonderful planet she really was.

However, on one day, on the way to the galaxy sandbox with Saturn, Sun noticed that there was a group of planets that she didn’t recognize playing in it.

“Hey Saturn, those planets look like a whole lot of fun! Let’s go and play with them!”

Saturn told Sun, “I don’t know, Sun. I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”

“Well, why not?” questioned Sun. “They all look like they’re having such a wonderful time, though! Let’s go and play with them!”

Sun then grabbed Saturn by the hand to lead her down to the sandbox, but Saturn immediately withdrew her hand and blurted, “No! I don’t want to!”

Sun looked at Saturn confused and then just simply shrugged as she turned in the direction of the planets playing in the sandbox. “Well, I suppose I’ll just have to go on by myself then.”

Sun turned around and made her way down to the sandbox. Alone. Without Saturn.

As Saturn watched Sun walk down to the sandbox from atop the hill they were standing at, she suddenly developed an overwhelming feeling.

“Why did I just do that? What was I thinking?” Saturn thought to herself.

As soon as Sun set foot into that sandbox, the new group of planets immediately took notice of her presence and walked up to her to introduce themselves. Soon afterwards, they were all laughing and having fun and building sand castles together.

Saturn’s eyes began to water at the sight of all this. Everyone was having so much fun in the sandbox. Without her.

Then, all of a sudden, as the tears burst from her eyes, that overwhelming feeling Saturn had felt when Sun had left her, suddenly grew and grew and grew until it completely consumed her. That overwhelming feeling was the feeling of loneliness.

They next day, Sun went to go see Saturn. Sun found Saturn at the library, reading.

“Saturn, you have got to come with me this time to go and play with those new planets! They are so much fun!”

Saturn did her best to keep herself preoccupied with the book she was reading as Sun was talking to her.

“Yeah, there’s Jupiter. She’s really loud and really funny. Mars is really, really strong, but has a bit of a temper. But she has a really good heart and means well. Then, there’s Mercury, who’s super smart. And Venus. She’s really pretty and really nice too! You should come with me to the sandbox today and meet them! I’m pretty sure they’ll really like you!”

Saturn just continued to keep her face buried in the book she was reading.

“No, I think that I’ll just stay inside today and finish up this book. Plus, I’m not feeling all to well. Maybe next time, okay?”

“Are you sure?” asked a concerned Sun. “Do you want me to stay here with you?”

“No, no. It’s okay, really. Don’t worry about me. You just go and have fun.”

Sun looked at Saturn, who, not even once, took her eyes off that book the entire time, incredibly disappointed.

“Well, if you say so.”

Sun left, leaving Saturn all alone, once again. Saturn then threw her face into the book she was supposedly reading and then cried and cried and cried.

The next day, Saturn went to go see Sun. Sun was not alone, of course. As always, Sun was laughing and having a good time with everybody. Sun was never alone. Never like Saturn.

Saturn had finally mustered up the courage to tell Sun the reason for her unusual behavior, or so she thought, because just as she was walking toward Sun, she suddenly froze and forgot what it was she was going to tell her.

Sun spotted Saturn in the distance and waved at her to join her.

“Hey, Saturn! You finally made it! We were all waiting for you! Come on over and let’s all play together!”

Saturn became frightened and just headed in the opposite direction and ran. Everyone noticed this and began to talk.

They said things like,

“What’s wrong with her? Is that really Saturn?”

“What a weirdo. What’s gotten into her?”

“She’s crazy. What in the world is wrong with her?”

“Is she always like that? How do you even put up with her?”

“She’s a strange one. Really odd.”

“Sun, is that really the wonderful Saturn that you’re always telling us about?”

Sun became extremely upset at hearing all this.

“Everyone, please stop saying such things about Saturn. You all don’t know her like I do. She is a truly good planet deep down.”

Then Sun ran after Saturn.

Sun ran and ran and searched everywhere for Saturn, until she found her sitting all alone crying in the galaxy sandbox; the very place they first met.

Sun walked toward a crying Saturn.

“Go away, Sun. I embarrassed you in front of your friends and I know you all probably hate me right now.”

Sun looked at Saturn rather surprised.

“I’m not smart like Mercury. I’m not funny like Jupiter. I’m not brave like Mars. And I’m not pretty like Venus. So I’ll understand if you never want to see me ever again. I’m just better off alone anyway.”

As Saturn was telling her all this, Sun just burst into laughter.

“Is this what this was all about? But that’s the very thing that makes you so very special to me! It’s because you’re not like everybody else!”

Sun just laughed and laughed and laughed and Saturn cried and cried and cried.

Finally, Sun stopped laughing and confessed to Saturn, “You want to know a secret? When I first got here, I was kind of scared because I didn’t know anybody. But then I met you and I wasn’t so scared anymore.”

Sun just simply smiled, then got down on her knees and began playing around with the sand until into what appeared to be a sand castle, but not quite.

Sun looked at Saturn and smiled, “I think your castle is beautiful.”

THE END