148. The Crab and Her Children

Mother Crab had two little Crab children, and one sunny day she took them out for a walk along the shore.
When the crabs had gone a short distance, Mother Crab said, "Run on ahead, children! Run! Run! You go play, and I will catch up with you in my own time."
One of the crab children said, "I will walk with you, Mother! I don't want to leave you."
The other child just laughed. "Silly! We're all crabs and none of us can run. We can't go any faster even if we wanted to, no matter what Mother says."
[a story from Liberia]



Inspired by: "Mother Crab and Her Children" in Folktales from Liberia (in Journal of American Folklore) by Richard C. Bundy, 1919.

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