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It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon and I had decided to spend my afternoon
by the Santa Monica Pier. I started walking past the shops and restaurants on
the pier when something near a small seafood restaurant got my attention. I
noticed a big barrel, without a lid, that was full of crabs. Since it was placed
right by the pier, I realized these crabs could easily jump out and fall back
into the ocean. Feeling really good about my discovery and my righteousness
about this whole event, I approached the restaurant owner and told him about
what was going on. To my surprise, the owner of the restaurant laughed at me and
told me to go back and watch the crabs more carefully. I thought to myself "Look
at them carefully; what does that mean?"
I spent two hours by the pier looking at that barrel full of crabs. I noticed
that every time one of the crabs tried to get to the edge of the barrel to
escape, all the other ones would pull him back in.
It was amazing to watch these creatures do this over and over again. That
entire afternoon, my mind was filled with all kinds of similarities to those
crabs. I began to recognize this particular behavior in myself and other people
around me. I realized that I have had many different kinds of crabs in my life:
friend crabs, girlfriend crabs, student crabs, co-worker crabs, boss crabs, etc.
I thought of all the times my so-called friends would call me and talk me out of
doing something that I wanted to do (something I knew was important).
My questions to you are: Who are the crabs in your life? Who and what is
holding you back from doing what you want? When you decide to work out, go on a
diet, or do something worthwhile, who and what stops you?
What kind of conversations are going on in your mind? What is it that makes
it important to listen now and forget later? Why do we say we are trying to do
the everything right, but choose not to do the right thing? Who are the crabs
that govern our lives?
Fariborz Azhakh
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