It’s time I think to change up my style.

So pull out your inner child and sit for awhile.

I want to have some fun and tell you a tale,

about Casey the Crab, and Scrillow the Snail!

GOOD FRIENDS, PART ONE

Scrillow the Snail was out for his usual morning walk, his slick, grey skin, or mantle, shining from the sun beaming down on him. He was sitting on a rocky ledge, taking a rest, and the salt water in the lagoon next to him was shining too, like sparkling diamonds floating on top of the water. Scrillow was very content, and rather sleepy from the sun. He was an old snail, and because he couldn’t remember when he was actually born, he wasn’t quite sure how old he was. Scrillow moved even slower than he used to, and his left antennae was bent into the shape of an upside down letter L. He wore tiny, square glasses to help him see and not squint so much with his beady, little eyes. He dragged his cream colored shell behind him, still attached to his lower body.

Suddenly his left antennae picked up a noise, the upside down letter L antennae quivering with signals of Warning! Warning! Turning his head to the left he saw a tiny black suitcase with the letters CC being slung over the ledge of the rock he was sitting on, and a tiny pink claw was holding onto the handle. Several pink legs scrambled to the top of the ledge, followed by a pink body. It was a crab! The smallest crab Scrillow had ever seen.

“Hi”, said the crab. “My name is Casey! What’s yours?”

“My name is Scrillow”, the old snail replied, looking down at Casey through his square glasses. ” I am curious. Why do you have a suitcase marked with the letters CC and a red sock sticking out of the side of it?”

“CC stands for Casey the Crab. And I have ten legs, two of them with claws. When you have as many legs as I do you need a lot of socks. Especially when you are running away from home.”

“Well, that brings us to another question. Young Casey, why are you running away from home,” asked Scrillow.

Casey stood up on all eight of his legs and waved his claws in the air. “Because I want to be a mathematician! I love numbers! My family thinks I can only count to the number of legs I have. Ten! But I understand a new way of counting. Multiplication! See those four little pebbles lying next to your shell? Well, if you take four pebbles times four pebbles you come up with sixteen pebbles! Get it, Scrillow? Four sets of four pebbles. I’m a genius with numbers. So, I’m headed out into the world to find other crabs that think like me, and share my new way of counting.”

“But what about your family? Won’t they miss you?”

Casey sat down on the rocky ledge, a little tear sliding down his tiny face. “I don’t think so Scrillow,” he said, his voice suddenly soft and sad. “They all just get kind of crabby when I talk about my new way of counting. I don’t think they really listen to me.”

Scrillow studied his new friend. ‘I’m a snail, Casey. But I’m interested in learning new ways of counting. Do you think you could include me in finding someone that thinks like you?”

“Sure Scrillow! My first student! This is so wonderful!”

“Why don’t you climb upon my back and I will take us to some other friends I know. They may want to learn new things, too.”

So Casey did just that. He pulled himself up on the back of Scrillow, holding tight to his suitcase.

“O.K.! I’m ready.”

“Snails move slow, as you know. But just in case, settle in up there on my back and be safe.”

Casey sat, and sat some more. But Scrillow was moving so slow and the warm sun was making him so sleepy. Before he knew it, Casey was fast asleep.

A little while later Casey was awakened by a loud voice with an English accent. “I say there, boys. What are you up to?”

Casey looked over to the lagoon and saw a silver fish with his head out of the water. Scrillow was very sleepy too, his head bobbing, his upside down letter L antennae moving from side to side.

“Who are you?” asked Casey.

“I’m Freddie the Fish. I’ve been swimming all the way from the English Channel. Out to discover new things, I am.”

Casey immediately straightened up on the back of Scrillow and excitedly asked, “Would you like to learn a new way of counting? I can teach you!”

“Sure,” Freddie said. ” Come on out here in the water and we can talk all about it. Better yet, let me swim over there and you can jump on my back. I can show you a trick or two myself.”

Casey slid off the back of Scrillow and set his suitcase down on the rocks. It was then he realized they had barely moved from their original spot.

“Scrillow,” he said. “We’ve made no progress at all. I’m jumping in with Freddie the Fish. I’m sure he can take me somewhere new where I can teach as the mathematician that I am.”

Scrillow sat up and stretched his upside down letter L antennae as straight as he could. “Young Casey, I’ll have you know my great, great grandfather was a Turbo Snail. When I need to I can move fast, but most of the time I have no need. Life is best in the slow lane. There is no need to overcompensate. I have found that rarely goes well for me.”

“Yeah, yeah, that’s you. Sorry Scrillow, but I’m jumping in to swim with Freddie.”

Casey turned and jumped onto the back of Freddie and they moved swiftly through the warm water.

Casey laughed. “This is fun! Let’s jump Freddie!”

Freddie did begin to jump, leaping through the water over and over. Suddenly Casey did not feel so well, his belly was feeling funny.

“Slow down, Freddie, ” he said. “This is way too fast for me. I can’t teach you anything new like this. Two times two equals five. No! I mean, two times two equals four. See what I mean? Stop Freddie!”

Bur Freddie didn’t hear Casey. He was having too much fun splashing and jumping in the water.

Casey was scared. “Help me, Scrillow! Make him stop!”

Scrillow’s left upside down letter L antennae began to spin, fast and then even faster. He heard Casey and Casey was his new friend. Scrillow knew he had to help him. It was Turbo time!

And faster than you’ve ever seen a snail move, Scrillow gathered up his small body and the protective shell attached to his lower body, and with turbo speed he jumped into the salt water. But Scrillow was not used to such speed and he fell through the water, tuning several somersaults over and over till he landed on the sandy bottom of the lagoon. And there he lay, dizzy and very still.

Casey watched as his new friend somersaulted to the bottom.

“Oh, no!” Casey shouted. “Scrillow!”

This time Freddie heard Casey and stopped splashing in the water. Together they both swam to the bottom of the lagoon and quickly swam over to Scrillow.

“Scrillow! Wake up! Scrillow!” shouted Casey. He tugged on Scrillow’s upside down letter L antennae and Scrillow slowly raised his head.

” I think I overcompensated,” whispered Scrillow. And lying his head back down on the sandy bottom, Scrillow became very still.

TO BE CONTINUED!

c   Love, Joan