After work yesterday I decided to walk to the pharmacy. It’s about 2 miles, but it would connect connect two areas where I’ve done allot of walking. (I keep track of the routes I walk or bicycle and highlight them on maps – it’s just a strange thing I do.)

Lately though, I’ve been finding things on my walks. One day it was $5.00, on another a dollar. One day I found a WW2 era Japanese bayonet still in serviceable condition, with just a tiny amount of surface rust on the blade that was easily cleaned away. It is strange the things one can find, and strange the things that can come into our lives when we have our eyes and our hearts open.

On the walk last night as I was walking from Woodcrest to Ellisburg in Cherry Hill, it should have come as no surprise when I found something interesting on this walk, but this item was unique. Some would argue thst finding a WW2 Japanese bayonet on a street corner in Camden NJ is unique, so I guess that what we are discussing is degrees of uniqueness. But as I was walking on Brace toward Ellisburg I saw a strangely colored object moving on the pavement. When I got to it, I picked it up and recognized that it was a Hermit Crab, and knew that it wouldn’t be able to get up the curb and off the road, so I set it on the grass and walked away.

Then I began to think about a Hermit Crab surviving in the wild with winter approaching – they are tropical creatures. How long has it been since it had food or water? But if I picked it up, what could I safely carry it in? So I had a small nylon bag for my raincoat that I keep in my backpack and I placed the little creature in there and continued my walk – I was going to the pharmacy to pick up some prescription refills, and I was trying to figure out what to feed this tiny creature, as well as how to house it. I didn’t have hermit crab food, and wasn’t near a pet store, and the pharmacy pet section didn’t have anything for hermit crabs. But they did have some dog treats that were made of seafood, chicken, and vegetables. They had a covered aluminum lasagne pan, and some spring water. I purchased those and made my way home. Hermie proved to be an adept climber and nearly climbed out of the bag before I noticed, and on part of the walk home it had got very chilly so I held Hermie close. (Since Hermit crabs can change sex whenever they molt I’ll use gender neutral pronouns borrowed from Marge Piercy here of ‘hir’ and ‘hse’.) Hse seemed to appreciate the warmth of my hand and body in the chill of the night air as Hse was able to remain much calmer.

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So we made it home though, that calmness abated, or rather, hire unsettled nature was revived. I put hir in the lasagne pan with some small decorative stones and a bowl with water, and placed some of the dog treats inside for food. Hse was quite active until finding the food, and really remained calm through the night. I ordered a habitat with a heater and proper food to insure Hse gets the needed calcium and other nutrients, and shall get a playmate too.

I did post that I found this little one on my Facebook page and on Nextdoor, and if a child lost this little one, I hope we can connect, but I honestly find that unlikely and more than a little sad. So the best I can do is to give this one a home and treat it well and think that perhaps there was some reason that I chose that day to take that particular walk. Maybe the universe isn’t entirely random after all.

So now I’m done my day and heading home from work. I’m looking forward to seeing Hermie and how he’s doing, offering another snack, seeing if hse likes to be held, and hope to offer it a good home while it’s here.

I never saw myself as an adopter of hermit crabs, but then again there are many things I never saw happening in my life. Life gives us what it will. Our choice is what to do with what we are given.