The Deer and The Sea Snail
Folklore from Maluku
A long time ago in a jungle in Aru Islands, Maluku, lived a group of deer. They were very proud of their ability in running very fast. They always stayed in different places. They challenged other animals in a running match. If the deer won the match, they took over the place and stayed there. Not far from the jungle, there was a beautiful beach. A group of sea snail lived there. The deer heard about the beautiful beach and planned to live there. They had a plan to challenge snails in a running match. They were very sure to win the match. Sea snails were slow in walking. “What’s the rule?” asked the leader of the sea snails after he heard about the challenge. “Do you see all the capes there? There are twelve capes, from here until there,” the deer leader pointed the capes. The distance between one cape to another was very far.