November 12 - Mimi the Clam

Mimi the clam lived at the bottom of the sea with her friends Connie the crab, Ebeneezer the shrimp (or just Ebi), and Carlos the squid. Nobody called him Carlos, though. They all called him Guess So on account of his answering every question with a shrug of his tentacles and a noncommittal "Guess so."
Every day after clam school Mimi would meet up with Connie, Ebi, and Guess So to go swimming and have a picnic. Everybody in the gang always brought enough of their favorite food to share with the rest of the gang. Everybody, that is, except for Mimi who only brought enough of her beloved seaweed cakes for herself.
Although Ebi and Guess So were cool with it, sometimes Mimi's unwillingness to share ticked Connie off, but Ebi and Guess So didn't pay her any mind. After all, Connie was almost always cranky about something. Besides, Ebi and Guess So were always pretty generous with their food and there was always plenty for everyone.
And so it went.
But one day Connie couldn't take it anymore. She wanted to know what Mimi's deal was. Why didn't she ever share her snacks with anyone? Why did she only ever seem to think about herself? In short, why was Mimi such a selfish shellfish?
It took some prodding to get Mimi to open her mouth, but at last she told them why she was so hesitant to share.
The reason was that she was afraid that if she shared something small like food, it might lead to bigger and bigger things and someone might eventually abscond with her pearl. And she couldn't risk that. And so that's why she never shared. It was just safer that way.
"But Mimi," Ebi said. "Clams don't have pearls. Oysters do."
She didn't believe Ebi at first, but then they got on Wiklampedia and confirmed that it was in fact oysters that had pearls, not clams.
Mimi was pretty crestfallen.
The rest of the gang tried to cheer her up, even Connie, who in an uncharacteristically kind and magnanimous move told Mimi that even though she didn't have a pearl inside her, she was still a real gem to them."
"You really think so?" asked Mimi.
"Yes," said Connie.
"Of course," said Ebi.
"Guess so," shrugged Guess So.
"Well, shucks," said Mimi. "You guys are the best."
And from then on, Mimi was giving and open and kind to the rest of the gang, and this new found openness filled her with joy. For the first time since she could remember, she was truly happy--as happy as a clam.