How Salmon Became so Colorful
A Fable Inspired by Nature
Kenzo, the little boy, sat on the banks of the Churui river in Hokkaido, watching the cherry blossoms. Nature inspired him. The dreamy pink blossoms dancing in the wind would capture his imagination and fuel his desire to learn Nature’s secrets.
One day Kenzo’s grandfather, Jiji, sat down beside him. Jiji said wisely “Kenzo you know that pink is a very powerful color”. “How so?” replied Kenzo, “The blossoms seem so delicate.” Jiji turned to Kenzo “Our traditional festivals honoring the salmon reflect the importance our health and wellbeing. The salmon are more than food, the pink keeps our skin healthy and youthful, our vision sharp, muscles strong. Nature provides the means to stay healthy and active into our old age. For the pink is powerful, and that is why the tradition is so important”.
“To learn more, little Kenzo, you need to speak to the little salmon, Keta-kun, as he makes his journey to the ocean and back again to join us in the festival. For on his journey, he learns much about the importance of pink, and we celebrate his knowledge and adventures”.
What a wonderful idea thought Kenzo, dutifully he made his way to the banks of the Churui and spotted a small salmon emerging from its pink egg. “Dear Keta-kun” asked Kenzo, on your long journey can you please find for me the reason why Pink is Powerful?”. Keta-kun gladly accepted his task, and dashed down the Churui, leaving Hokkaido for the mysteries of the sea.
On his journey Keta-kun met Satoru the Snow Crab, and he politely asked, “Can you tell me why Pink is Powerful?”. Satoru grunted a reply “great question, for the answer lies in nature’s special secret, astaxanthin, for it helps bring strength to my shell & protects me”. Before Kenzo could ask more questions, Satoru the Snow Crab scuttled away.
The ocean was vast but soon Keta-kun spotted Choki the Seagull, and he asked Choki if he knew about this … astaxanthin. “Oh yes” replied Choki “for the astaxanthin gives me the power to have great vision, without it I could not see the fish and prawns under the water. There is too much glare and my eyes would be very tired.” Continuing Choki said “look into my eyes for you see they are pink/red and that is where I store my astaxanthin”. Keta-kun was amazed, yes Choki’s eyes were pink/red but then he remembered that seagulls eat fish, sensing danger he quickly swam off.
Keta-kun’s journey brought him close to the shore and much to his amazement he saw lots of salmon but strangely they were in pens. Something was amiss, something was wrong, so he posed his concern to one of these caged salmon, “You look like me, but you seem different, what is it”. Mamoru answered Keta-kun with sadness in his voice “It is our diet, Keta-kun for they feed us an artificial astaxanthin. The chemical structure is bent, contorted and does not work like Nature intended. It comes from petrochemicals, leaves us weak and unlike you we could never, ever make that great journey back to the Festivals along the banks of the Churui.”
“For you are lucky” continued Mamoru, “Nature has fed you well and look, you have a powerful pink tone to you.” Just then Keta-kun realized that indeed he was pink, and yes, he did feel powerful. “But Mamoru, how did I become so pink?”. Mamoru replied “Mother Nature has put natural astaxanthin in your diet, Keta-kun. As you travel the oceans and grow, you also become more and more pink. It all starts from a small algae, Haematoccus pluvialis, and that is where Nature gives us our first lesson. The algae turns from green from red as it makes natural astaxanthin. Then little creatures that feed on algae and the precious astaxanthin is delivered eventually to you, Keta-kun, for you are lucky”.
Keta-kun knew it was time to return to Hokkaido, and to teach Kenzo all that he had learned, for he was proud to be part of the tradition and our connection with Nature
It was time to come home.
Mark JS Miller
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