Found around the rocky Hawaiian tide pools on the Big Island the A’Ama crabs or Lightfoot crabs in English are plentiful in Hawaii often seen racing across the rocks as the surf crashes.
During family portrait sessions, young children often find old crab shells sitting on a rock and feel sad thinking it is dead until (Uncle Beach – Me) tells them “the crab is not dead”, he has just left his old overcoat behind (shell) because he out grew it. Like children outgrow their winter coats. Yea! Beach Portrait session saved.
The A’Ama crab finds a pointy rock to snag his shell on so he can wiggle out of it. Then he hides under a lava rock to stay safe from eels and other underwater sea creatures wanting an easy meal. Soon he will join his buddies again on top the slippery rocks with his new shinny dark blue coat for protection.
Watching my dog Elvis chase these crabs was fun and I’m glad I did it because in very short order he became tired of the endless failures in his hunts and stopped doing it, never returning to chase them again.
We always hear people say “never give up, never” well, Elvis is smart and evidently a realist because he decided the crab hunt was a waste of his time for such a small meal and ran off to chase a fat mongoose.
Elvis often teaches me life’s lessons in the oddest ways. Thank you, Elvis, for helping me with my priorities.
Don’t sweat the small stuff. Ruff Ruff.