They say that a picture makes a thousand words…but for Harriman Nelson one picture’s can often be a reminder to the past…..
It was Harry’s first fishing trip and Grandpa Joe had just caught one of the most massive lobsters that young Harry had ever seen. His eyes went wide as he watch the massive creature come aboard and much to the amusement of most of the other fisher men that had come on the trip he was more interested in asking why it had got so large than just how much butter should be put on it later on in the day.
Harry was transfixed by the creature and followed it down from the deck and watched it as it being put into it’s own little tank. Just by watching the lobster he found that he was learning quite a few new things. Including a few new swear word from Grandpa Joe when the lobster dugs it’s pincers into his hand as it was put into it’s new temporary home for the trip back to shore and a date with some boiling water and barbeque.
But during the trip back to sure it was almost as if the lobster was talking to Harry. Telling him of all the wonders that went on at the bottom of the sea. Of the life and death struggle that went on every day. Not just from hungry fishermen, or children for that matter as Harry’s stomach rumbled as he looked at the lobster. But as he watched the lobster trying to swim in it’s ill sized tank. He was beginning to see another side of the story. Of the inner majesty of the ocean and some how he could tell that it was calling to him. And the lobster was calling to him telling him all this and that he should put him back into the ocean so that in years to come he and his friends would still be there in years to come.
So as the small boat came into port this was his dilemma. Should he do what the lobster was telling him? Let it go and then search it out again in years to come to find out all of the questions that his Grandpa could not answer about just what had made it so massive? Or was the lobster just a lobster and it was just Harry’s own imagination that made it seem like it was communicating? Or his was it his hunger? But then if it was his hunger then all that the lobster would be saying was, cook me. Not telling Harry about all the wonders of what lay below. Of sea urchins, Octopi, Dolphins, Plankton, Krill, Sperm Whales, Blue whales…all dancing below the sea with him.
Harry woke with a jolt and looked straight into the eyes of his Grandpa and then over at the empty tank. Which he had fallen asleep against as the ship had come in port.
"Harry lunch’s ready."
Harry just nodded. It looked as if his decision about what to do with the lobster had been taken out of his hands. But he was determined now that when he was older that he would somehow be able to make a voyage to the bottom of the sea but for now it was time for lunch. Lobster to be exact.