This story has such a catchy title. It's kind of strange, but I think the more we talk about it the more we'll get out of it. My first reactions to what I make of it are that we focus so much on appearances. We have expectations of what we imagine angels to look like, but how will we really know until we see one? Maybe he wasn't an angel at all. Maybe his purpose was to teach a lesson...maybe not to the characters in the story but to the readers.
What the story says is the account of this old, dirty angel-man who arrives in a town. He is used for profit by others but not offered compensation to help himself better his situation. He asks for nothing. He submits to living in a chicken coop as if he were some unspiritual animal. He is easily replace when something "better" comes along--the spider-girl. And when finally takes flight, it is a relief.
One apparent meaning I find in this story is that of appearances. It says, "His prudence fell on sterile hearts." Though they acknowledged him as an angel, he was not what they expected, so his messages go unheard. But he doesn't give up. He never complains. He stays around as the child grows up. When the profits cease and he's not the "attraction" anymore, he is cared for even less. Yet he finds strength. He must know his purpose, his mission, and he doesn't leave until it's completed. What it matters is harder to say. I'm confused by the crabs. But I think a strong message is not to disregard the people, even things, that come into our lives because they probably have a purpose and a meaning to offer us if we take the time to listen.
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