HENRY the CRAB

A little crab was arguing with his mother about how they walk; “Mom! Why can’t I go forward like all the other animals?”  His mother always tells him that they were made that way and then she would close the conversation by telling him to go and collect firewood. 

The little crab’s name is Henry. Henry was the youngest in the family; his siblings call him “mister-question-mark” because he always has questions stored in his mind. Henry was curious.

One day, Henry was with his friends. There was Gina (a flyer), Freya (a runner), and George (a digger). They head a SPY CENTER as they call it; since they love to go to places “undercover”.  This spy center had no other members but them; this is their way to have FUN. “Hello, fellow agents! Today we are to find the ‘hidden gem of wakalooloo’ ”, said Freya. “ It is located somewhere….” She continued; “NORTH!” shouted George. “I know… I know…” he was pleased, raising his glasses and dusting it off with a handkerchief. Freya continued telling everyone about their new adventure. However, Gina noticed the Henry was not in his participative mood. Henry was absentmindedly thinking about his argument. “Why can’t I go on forward?”his thoughts were moving like waves crashing amongst each other. And then, his consciousness came back when Gina pecked him asking if there’s something he would like to share. Henry raised his pincers and gently said “Continue.”

So they are off for the search. Gina was assigned, of course, to search through air. She would fly above them and tell them if something is up ahead of them. George, a mole, would search beneath the ground so that he can easily hear or sense threats. Frey, a bossy rat, would always take the lead while Henry would follow her from behind—side stepping. He felt useless. Freya could lead, George could track, Gina could fly, and he is worthless; he thought to himself. Freya was singing a melody she made up while they were walking. Gina wore her goggles and flew swiftly in the air, and mole was busy calculating time. Henry wished he could be like them—useful, skillful, and talented.

After hours of travel, Gina saw an obstacle for their search—an estuary. She knew they will find it hard to cross the water since they are small in sizes. So, she made her way down and gave them the warning. Before Freya stomped the ground, George already popped his head out giving the same news. Henry listened. Minutes passed and they reached the estuary. It seemed impossible for them to cross. Then again, a voice came from behind and said “I can fly my way across the water; I can lift Freya since she weighs lightly.” Freya, knowing that she is now “safe”, agreed cheerfully. But George didn’t feel good about it. Neither did Henry. They want to be part of the search. “We’ll see you on the other side.” The two flew their way to the other part of the dry land. Waving her wings, Henry knew that they made it already—Gina and Freya.

“Henry, will you take me on the other side?” George asked. “ME? Whoa! Why me? I’m just a crab! I can’t do anything.” Henry argued.

 “You are a CRAB. You can swim! Didn’t your mom tell you that?”

“NO. And I never tried. All I did was walk…sideways…and I hate my life.”

“Well, we can try? I can ride on your shell…”

“No way, George. I won’t risk your life! You can’t trust me your…your life… what if we drown? What if we get swallowed by something? NO. no. no.”

“I want to be part of that search, Henry. You know how much this means to me.” George said

Henry, surprised by George’s idea, remained silent with his thoughts “What was he thinking about? ME? Swim? No way!” he argued to himself. Then he saw George walking towards the shore line; he was digging his way to the other end when Henry saw that water was rushing towards the hole so he ran (sideways) as fast as he could towards the mole and pulled him up. “Okay, let’s try swimming… just don’t get yourself killed!” Henry said. George smiled and said “I knew you won’t let me down.”

So George made his way to Henry’s shell and balanced himself. On three, they were already paddling their way across the estuary; and before they know it, they are on dry land. “Hurray! You made it!” shouted Gina and Freya as they meet up with the other two. George gave Henry a pat on the shell and said “You did great, agent.” And they went on in search for the gem. Henry felt something inside of him; he felt proud. He discovered that he can swim. He is silently cheering for himself; it kept him going feeling all good that he was able to help.  And so, Gina was back in the air, George underground, Freya on lead and Henry by the rear.

Time passed and they were hungry, they scouted for food. It was easier for Gina to find food from trees. She pecked on fruit stems and her friends would catch it from below. Henry packed his shell with enough food to keep them full on their travel. After eating, Freya took a good look at their map and pointed out directions. Of course, the other agents took her lead. They were on their places as they took off and searched again. This time, Freya was humming a tune with a marching beat.

George popped his head up and asked for Freya. Henry looked for Freya but she is out of sight. He called out to Gina and was told that she did not notice her either. “HELP!!!” Freya screamed. A little wild cat caught her by the tail. George and Gina froze and watch in terror as the cat played with Freya like a child plays with food. “Not a movement from you! One step forward and I will kill her” said the cat. Henry slowly side stepped his way towards the bushes, silently and swiftly like a real spy. He made it to the cat’s tail and looked at is pincers as though they were talking to each other “make me proud, “ he said.

SNAP! And Freya was up in the air, Gina quickly flew and caught her by the claws and led her to safety. Henry’s claws still clipped on the cat’s tail like a rodeo on the back of the bull. He let go of the tail, George caught him by his flabby stomach and the cat was nowhere to be found. Another victory for the team! And they went on cheering and cheering for themselves.

 “Henry, Thank you for saving me.”

“I did what I should…that’s what friends do…”

“That was really brave of you” Gina interrupted.

“I didn’t know these pincers will come in handy.”

They all laughed and went on with their journey. After few turns there it was, at the top of the waterfalls, trapped in a hole was the gem—The Gem of Wakalooloo. Freya was afraid of heights, so they tasked Gina to retrieve the gem since she is a flyer. Gina flew confidently and swayed with the wind on her way to salvage the gem. The three watched in amazement hoping to see the gem. Gina landed on the hole. It was dark really dark. She stayed there trying to fight her fear of darkness. All she could see was the tiny light that the gem illuminates but it comes and goes.

George noticed that it was really taking a long time for Gina to get the gem. He can’t dig his way up and because of his weight; the steep mountain was hard for him to climb. Henry knew he can climb his way up. He is used to climbing steep mountains since he walks at the tip of his feet—like tip-toeing. So he volunteered to go and help Gina out in retrieving the gem. 

He made it easily at the top, and soon found out Gina crying. She felt useless because she can’t be as brave as Henry. Henry was caught is surprise, he did not know that he is seen to be brave by somebody whom he looked up to.  Also, he was taken aback knowing that Gina is afraid of the dark since he always assumed that Gina is the best agent there is because she can do anything. Henry realized that everyone has a weakness. Setting aside his thoughts, he told Gina that they’d retrieve the gem together. He led the way and not long enough, they saw the gem. It shines as bright as they could ever imagine. The feeling of success gushed through their veins. They were more than happy. They used the gem to light their way back out of the hole and they made their way down the mountain.

 Gina held the gem with her claws. Freya and George watched in amazement with their mouths wide open.

As the four of them gathered closely, the gem in their possession, they can’t take their eyes off it.

“WOW! It’s so shiny…” said George

“AMAZING! The colors change as the light touches it…” Freya added

“We found it. It’s really beautiful….” Gina in her admiration

“I love it.” Henry claimed

The four friends made their way home, walking together, side-stepping. They laughed altogether.

There are a lot of Henry’s in this world. Henry felt as if he was cursed with the side stepping manner of walking instead of the usual. He focused on that “weakness” as he claimed it to be. He made his weakness get into him, making him feel worthless.

We all have weaknesses. How we acknowledge this is the real challenge. These weaknesses can turn to strengths if only we give it a shot...If we give it a try…if we are placed in a life threatening situation.

Let not a mere weakness hinder us from reaching our own “Gem of Wakalooloo”. May we all turn our weaknesses into strengths—and dreams to reality.