A few days ago, I was watching a documentary on sharks. I have always been fascinated by these creatures. They have been around, virtually unchanged, for millions of years. Homo Sapiens have only been around for approximately 200,000 years.  Depending on the scientist, it may be less.

This documentary showed a shark being examined, tested. It was caught and then taken out of the water by means of a platform that raised it up to where the scientists could reach it. It didn’t seem to be terribly happy about the situation but quite a few divers made sure it stayed put.  A hose through the gills helped it to continue breathing.

As a species we are curious.  We want to know why and how. We want to know everything about the creatures we share this planet with.  We document eating habits, mating habits, how they sleep, where they travel, their young . . . the list is endless.

As I watched the scientists taking blood samples, poking into orifices and attaching a tracking device to the animal, I wondered . . . It sounded eerily like a human recounting of their experience with an abduction!

I wonder what the shark did when he was released? Did he go and tell all his friends about his experience?

 

“Oh man you will never guess what happened to me! I was taken!”

“What are you talking about? Are you eating plankton again? You know, that stuff makes you see things that aren’t there.”

“No! No! It just happened this morning! They took me up to a ship, and, and, I was probed! I saw those creatures; you know the ones with black rubber skin and one big eye with two more behind it. They have got four appendages and they walk on two of them. They all look the same! And They were touching me!”

“Calm down.”

“Bob said he was abducted three weeks ago. I didn’t believe him. I do now! And I think they left a probe inside me, by my dorsal fin. Maybe they’re tracking me! Maybe they want to know where I am so they can pick me up again! I got to get out of here! I got to go somewhere where they can’t find me! I’m warning you . . . They could come for you next!”

“Nah, they were probably just seals. Look, plankton is not something you can eat on a regular basis.  It makes you hallucinate. I know you see some of the big guys eating it but you’re just not capable of holding your plankton.”