…The young man lifted the black beanie from over his eyes and looked at the illuminated ceiling of the tent. He unzipped the door and peered outside. G-d had answered his little prayer after all. It didn’t rain a drop. The sky was as sunny as could be, peppered with only the most harmless and friendly clouds.
The perfect fast day weather
He washed negal vaser and grabbed his siddur to start korbonos. Lacking a good place to sit he went next door to the beach where he’d have a comfortable place to sit and daven. As he emerged from the wooded campsite to the open beach he was finally able to see the whole bay for the first time.
It was more beautiful than he had ever seen
The bay was perfect in every way. Turquoise water continuously washed up onto the pure white sand as little birds would run through, leaving brief itty bitty tracks in their wake. The bay was wide and perfectly round, with a narrow neck on one end that opened up to the sea, thus earning it the name, ‘
Strong gusts of eastern wind blew in from the neck and into the young man’s face as he sat reciting korbonos in this majestic setting. The bay made him imagine pirate ships sailing in to hide their newly robbed treasure amidst the trees of the dark forest. They’d anchor their ship right in the middle of the bay and come to shore on rowboats. Then, led by their bad-tempered and tough captain, the pirates would drag a large black treasure chest across the smooth white sand. They’d heave and ho it up the hill next to him while their captain mercilessly degrades the men and demand they move faster. They’d move it right by their tent and stop at the pond where they would start digging. Finally, having buried their treasure for later use, they’d jump back in their rowboats and return to ship. Then, just as quick as it came, the ship would catch the morning wind out of the bay to the open sea, where they would sail around
The young man shook his head.
He should really be concentrating on the Hebrew words.
He finished korbonos and returned to the tent area. The beach was too windy and there was no place he’d be able to put his Teffilin. Besides, he also wanted to learn a bit before he started his morning prayers. He put down his siddur and sat down, using a log to lean on, and read from a pamphlet he had brought along.
Thump thump thump
thump thump
What the heck was that?
The young man turned around. What met his eyes was something he completely didn’t expect. Wallabies! Two of them and hopped in to say good morning to the three travelers. They didn’t seem to have any fear of them. They wallaby’s eyes met the young man’s with a look of curiosity and then it continued to hop around the tent area.
Well how about that!
The young man finished reading and found a tree near a brook where he could place his Teffilin 
bag and daven. He wrapped the black leather straps around his arm amidst the shade of the trees. All the while a wallaby thumped and thumped around him as if it enjoyed the young man’s company. He found a comfortable log and began Hodu.
Thump de thump de thump de thump
Funny wallaby
It sure loved thumpin’ around and watching him daven
The young man finished and went back to the bay to explore. He decided to 
walk the length of the sand to the other side. The sand was firm and easy to walk on. He walked by the edge of the water observing the peculiar habit of the waves. First the waves would crash only on the south eastern corner of the ‘wineglass’. Then, like either a ripple effect or a shockwave, the water would continue crashing in a fast and smooth sequence all through the whole curve of the bay until the end over a kilometer away. The young man enjoyed hearing the sound of the crash approaching from behind and then rushing ahead of him until he could hear it end way off in the distance.
SHSHSSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSH
When the young man reached the western side of the curve, opposite the neck, the sand became softer and annoying to walk on. He decided not to go on to the end. He looked ahead between the hill and the mountain which guarded the open sea. He saw the ocean out beyond and a small but mountainous island in the distance.
Hmm,
What’s over here?
The sand led to a hill for the entire curve until the end. The young man decided to climb up it to see what was on the other side. It was steep and there was a good amount of brush [snakes!(?)], but he found his away around and found himself gazing from the top.
Wow, look what I found
A huge, green, golf course like patch of land stretched out before him. He looked beyond to the very
mountain he had scaled the day before. The young man felt a good sense of satisfaction when he apprehended the distance they had traversed in merely one day. It was one of the hardest things ever, but they did it. The young man smiled. From now and forever, the challenges in his life would be that much easier.
Slide. Slide. Plop.
The young man was back on the sand and began walking back to their side of the bay. He could see one of his contemporaries, though they were but a tiny dark figure amidst the white sand. The young man casually made his way to his end of the bay escorted by the island birds that left little footprints for him to follow. The young man reached the clear stream at the end and decided to investigate where it led to. He followed the stream through the forest area behind the hill that concealed him from the beach. He strolled along the river bank enjoying the sight of the peaceful water and the shade of the trees and brush.
Brrrrrrr
Brr – clang, splash,
Rickety rickety rickety rickety
What on earth? There wasn’t a soul around. What could be making such noises? The young man made his way downstream and back around the hill onto the sand. Well now! How random is that? A fisher boat! The lone fisher boat and its single crewmember had snuck into the bay whilst the young man was exploring and anchored itself right in the middle. What are the chances? The young man wondered what else he’d find before the end of the day. He remembered, when they first arrived, the lady telling him that they might see a whale if they were real lucky. “Oh man,” he thought to himself,
“If only. That would make my whole trip.”
The exploring, coupled with the fasting, began to take effect on the young man. He yawned sleepily. He might as well sleep for an hour or two he postulated. He could look around later. He left the boat and the bay an
d returned to the tent in the woods up the hill. The wallabies were still hopping around and it looked like his friends had the same idea as he did. He entered the tent, lay on his back, pulled his black beanie over his eyes, folded his arms and legs, and slowly drifted off to the
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