This is not a mermaid.
This is a manatee.
For thousands of years, sailors on the open seas have reported the sighting of mermaids. In fourteen hundred and ninety-two while himself sailing upon the ocean blue, Christopher Columbus lifted his spy glass and exclaimed, “Mermaid Ho!!!” He was mistaken. It was not the long hair of a pretty girl with a fish’s tail washing through the waves. It was likely the long shape of a sea cow searching for a salad to munch for lunch. Chris had discovered the Americas and manatees.
Manatees are the long-lost relatives of elephants who went for a swim, developed flippers and decided to live their lives under the sea.
Under the sea. Under the sea. Down where its better. Down where it’s wetter. Take it from a Manatee. Maybe a Little Mermaid you’ll see. Under the sea.
There was nice Caribbean lilt to Sebastian’s animated critique of the world above the waves. The manatees were listening and so they have stayed — under the surface, largely hidden from human view.
In three submerged corners of the Earth you’ll find them: 1) the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico; 2) the Amazon Basin; and 3) the rivers and coast of West Africa. At times, they become footloose and travel. In 2006, a manatee visited New York City. There were no tickets to the play, and the water was too cold. So, the manatee headed home. Morning commuters on the Staten Island Ferry cell-phoned pictures of a mermaid heading south. It’s been a common mistake for millennia.
Three thousand years ago, the ancient Assyrians placed mermaids on their coins. If only they had known. A manatee would not have fit.
The seas abound with tales. Beneath the waves, tails are hard to distinguish. With bubble and foam, it can be dizzying — even for a Disney.
A manatee could be another protective friend, like a cautious crab. The manatee could be using its form, like Sebastian used his voice, to divert, dissuade and deflect a little mermaid from a perilous journey to a less friendly place of bright sun and dry land. There are protections under the sea that can be lost above.
Is it manatee a mermaid, or manatee and mermaid?
Take a look and see for yourself.
Under the sea.
Grandpa Jim