1
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asking it in a high solitary voice 
to protect her baby calf

2
00:00:07,579 --> 00:00:11,665
from all the harm that can 
be visited upon young seals.

3
00:00:39,107 --> 00:00:40,811
But the sea must not have heard

4
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Solanna the Elder singing
for her daughter's safety

5
00:00:44,191 --> 00:00:48,022
because one day 
something terrible happened.

6
00:00:48,022 --> 00:00:50,448
It happened like this.

7
00:00:50,448 --> 00:00:54,012
Solanna the Elder had always 
warned Solanna the Younger

8
00:00:54,012 --> 00:00:56,767
about the many dangers 
that lay ahead.

9
00:00:56,767 --> 00:01:02,522
She warned her not to swim too close 
to sharks and Solanna obeyed.

10
00:01:02,522 --> 00:01:04,508
She warned her about 
the people from the earth

11
00:01:04,508 --> 00:01:10,975
who came with clubs and guns and nets 
to harm and sometimes kill young seals.

12
00:01:10,975 --> 00:01:12,577
She warned Solanna the Younger

13
00:01:12,577 --> 00:01:18,747
about never going up to a sandy beach 
when the tide is about to turn.

14
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"Why?" asked Solanna the Younger.

15
00:01:22,722 --> 00:01:27,833
"Because," said Solanna the Elder, 
"if you are on a beach and the tide is turning,

16
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you will lose your sealskin 
and be trapped on the earth

17
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and I will not know you 
without your sealskin.

18
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And because I will not know you, 
I will not be able to save you."

19
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"But why?" said Solanna the Younger,

20
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who was used to being 
saved by her mother.

21
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Solanna the Elder 
looked at the baby seal

22
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and wondered should she tell her what 
happens to seals who lose their skins.

23
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She decided she would.

24
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"If you should ever lose your skin, 
you will become a seal maiden."

25
00:02:02,356 --> 00:02:05,721
"What's a seal maiden?" 
said Solanna the Younger.

26
00:02:05,721 --> 00:02:08,446
She thought she might 
like to be a seal maiden.

27
00:02:08,446 --> 00:02:12,410
It sounded very important.

28
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"A seal maiden," 
said Solanna the Elder,

29
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"is a seal trapped in a girl's body. 
The earth is full of seal maidens.

30
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Seals who didn't obey their mothers

31
00:02:23,945 --> 00:02:27,764
and went up on sandy beaches 
when the tide was turning.

32
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You can tell them by their eyes 
and their high voices

33
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and the slow way they walk

34
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and the way they look at the sea 
in the moonlight.

35
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Don't become a seal maiden, Solanna. 
Promise me now you won't."

36
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"I won't," said Solanna,

37
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and she meant to obey 
her mother always,

38
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and not become a seal maiden.

39
00:02:49,943 --> 00:02:55,252
But secretly, the idea of being 
a seal maiden took hold of her

40
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until one day, Solanna the Elder 
was out hunting,

41
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ripping nets to get at a catch 
of big juicy salmon for the dinner

42
00:03:03,010 --> 00:03:08,599
and Solanna the Younger 
was left to entertain herself.

43
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She swam up to a sandy beach.

44
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She didn't mean to go ashore

45
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but a big wave came from behind 
and washed her up.

46
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Straight away she forgot her promise
to her mother and began rolling in the sand.

47
00:03:27,347 --> 00:03:29,929
After a while, she got bored with that

48
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and dragged a rope of seaweed 
along with her teeth.

49
00:03:33,783 --> 00:03:36,849
Then she had a chat 
with a flock of seagulls

50
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and after that there were 
the starlings to annoy.

51
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When she got tired of them, she sang 
a few songs to pass the time.