Tommy Tortoise was unlike any other tortoise. Tommy was not content with his shell. All of the other tortoises never thought twice about their shell. So when Tommy would bring up his current dissatisfaction with the confining limits and general unattractiveness of his shell, the other tortoises would shake their head in pity at him, wondering where his senses had gone.

But Tommy knew something that all the other tortoises didn't know or just didn't plain care to know. He knew that he -- the real him -- was more than just a shell, four legs, a tail and a head. He knew that somewhere deep inside his shell was the real Tommy, and he was quite frustrated that he could neither see that real Tommy nor show him to the rest of the tortoises, so they would know as well that there was much more to life than a head, four legs, a tail and a shell.

In fact, Tommy despised his shell for keeping the real Tommy in. Because of this darned shell, Tommy could never really feel as he was meant to feel. How could he, when the majority of his body was locked up inside a cold and unfeeling shell.

You might ask, "How did Tommy come to so much despise his shell?" I am glad you asked that, for it is central to our story. Some time ago, Tommy noticed something he had never quite noticed before. As his feet would pass over different objects, he began to realize that each object had a different feel. Each object prompted a different sensation that he -- the real Tommy -- could enjoy. The rocks brought one sensation, the forest floor another. A fallen leaf crinkling under his foot; a worm gyrating and tickling his tail; the fresh spray of water on his nose: All these sensations and more brought a new excitement to his otherwise boring tortoise existence. "Why had I not noticed this before," he thought, "How blind could I have been?"

But yet the sensations were limited -- they were limited by his shell. Why was it that only such a small part of him -- the real Tommy -- was able to enjoy the great sensations of life? Why did he have to carry along this cursed shell anyway? He knew that deep inside his shell the real Tommy existed. He knew that he had just experienced so little of the sensations because of this limitation.

This is when Tommy got a strange idea which caused all the other tortoises to shake their head and laugh at him as if he had lost his mind. Tommy would ask the other tortoises, "Why do we need our shell?" and they would look back at him stony-eyed and serious and quite taken aback by such an absurd thought. "Why do we need our shell? Why do we need our shell? Son, we are our shell, the shell is us. You have a shell, and the shell has you. There is no answer to such a ridiculous and foolish question. Good day!" Time after time Tommy heard this until he began to think that maybe he was quite mad.

But yet, he could not forget the sensations. Oh, the pleasant and wondrous and exciting sensations! They were real. He knew it. No one could convince him that they weren't. And if the sensations were real and he really felt them -- and if he didn't feel them on his shell at all, then maybe the shell wasn't real. For the sensations were surely real. He believed that with all his heart. It was the shell. The shell wasn't real; it couldn't feel, it couldn't savor, it couldn't sense, it couldn't experience all that he knew was truly there. That was enough to convince him that the shell had to go!

"I will simply crawl out from this shell, and live the life of sweet sensation, the real life. The real Tommy will really be real then," Tommy thought and the thought brought much joy to his heart. "Yes, nothing can stop me. Today, Tommy Tortoise comes out of his shell!"

Tommy was completely convinced that this was the right thing to do. Only one slight hesitation passed through his mind for a moment and then it was gone. And that hesitation was this thought, "But you know your shell is good for protection. It does help keep you shielded against hurt and pain and randomly roving monsters in the night." But this hesitation quickly passed, for the risk was surely worth taking.

So Tommy positioned his shell firmly against a rock so that it would not budge. Then with all his might, Tommy pushed with his legs against the rock. He pushed and he pushed and he pushed and he pushed -- it is not easy coming out of your shell! Tommy strained against his shell with all his might. Even though the work was tiresome, Tommy even found in this a reserved satisfaction as he sensed his body leaving the shell. After much effort which seemed to enervate him to the very core of his being causing spasms of pain to jolt him to the very edge of unconsciousness, Tommy found himself lying exhausted outside of his shell.

"I've done it! I've done it!" he cried. Although he was fatigued, he felt a true peace as he felt the ground underneath him. But this time it wasn't just his head, or feet -- it wasn't just Part-Tommy. This time he -- the real Tommy, all of Tommy -- felt the sensations all over his body. His belly felt the warm ground. His belly had never felt anything before, but now it did, and oh how good it felt. He rubbed his belly into the ground and over the ground. This was too much! Could it be! He turned over on his back so that his back could feel the ground. He shimmied his body back and forth over the ground so that his back could feel the fantastic coarseness of the earth beneath him. He couldn't have done this with his shell. He would have lain helpless if he had even attempted such a feat. But now, he could squirm and roll over and over and over -- belly to back, back to belly.

"Oh, that others could enjoy this wondrous freedom! Oh, that others could know the joys of what I feel! Am I the first one to try this? How could I have been so blind to have missed this for so long? Glory of glories!" Tommy exclaimed, more happy than he had ever been in his whole life.
 

A passing large animal suddenly found its way down the path where Tommy's helpless and fragile body lie. He was fatally crushed under its weight.

© Richard J. Vincent, November 27, 1997