--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We were all like a gaggle of hermit crabs…" description: "\"“We were all like a gaggle of hermit crabs without shells, flopping around trying to find ourselves. Instead we found each other, and that's just as go..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/959/hollis-gillespie-55469_quote_we-were-all-like-a-gaggle-of-hermit-crab_1902975.jpg" --- # We were all like a gaggle of hermit crabs without shells… ![“We were all like a gaggle of hermit crabs without shells, flopping around trying to find ourselves. Instead we found each other, and that's just as good, I guess.” quote by Hollis Gillespie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/959/hollis-gillespie-55469_quote_we-were-all-like-a-gaggle-of-hermit-crab_1902975.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/959/hollis-gillespie-55469_quote_we-were-all-like-a-gaggle-of-hermit-crab_1902975.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/959/hollis-gillespie-55469_quote_we-were-all-like-a-gaggle-of-hermit-crab_1902975.jpg) > ““We were all like a gaggle of hermit crabs without shells, flopping around trying to find ourselves. Instead we found each other, and that's just as good, I guess.”” [Hollis Gillespie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hollis-gillespie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Describes early aimlessness and the comfort found in community, suggesting that shared connection can substitute for self-identity. **In simple terms:** Finding others can help you find yourself. Key Takeaway Seek supportive relationships. Themes identity community self discovery Mood reflective hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - college life - career transitions - new city adjustment - creative projects Key Concepts hermit crabs metaphor belonging interdependence Questions to Reflect On - How does community shape your identity? - When do you need solitude? A Different Perspective Relying on others may hinder personal growth if overused. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hermit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hermit/) ## Related quotes > [Man, I'm just into Buddhism, and I'm at peace with the fact that me, as this person, probably gonna not be around. Think about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-mcbride/man-i-m-just-into-buddhism-and-i-m-at-peace-with-the-fact-that-me-as/) [Danny McBride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-mcbride/) > [There are no small number of people in this world who, solitary by nature, always try to go back into their shell like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/there-are-no-small-number-of-people-in-this-world-who-solitary-by/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [It doesn't seem too unusual to have a live hermit crab here in Atlantic City, but when you think I brought it all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-george/it-doesn-t-seem-too-unusual-to-have-a-live-hermit-crab-here-in/) [Phyllis George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-george/) > [As a boy I was a hermit crab, but I soon came out of my shell. Now I am a pincer crab, and soon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-yorke/as-a-boy-i-was-a-hermit-crab-but-i-soon-came-out-of-my-shell-now-i-am/) [Thom Yorke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-yorke/) > [I wanna buy a bunch of hermit crabs and make them live together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demetri-martin/i-wanna-buy-a-bunch-of-hermit-crabs-and-make-them-live-together/) [Demetri Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demetri-martin/) > [“Many love stories are like the shells of hermit crabs, though others are more like chambered nautiluses, whose architecture grows with the inhabitant and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/many-love-stories-are-like-the-shells-of-hermit-crabs-though-others/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) > [The trouble with glossy magazines is that they tend to be stuffed with articles about handbag designers - the sort of women who, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-reardon/the-trouble-with-glossy-magazines-is-that-they-tend-to-be-stuffed/) [Kate Reardon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-reardon/) > [You will most appreciate 'Freddy and Fredericka' if you are familiar with the story of the Fall, the Good Hermit, 'Tom Jones,' 'Huckleberry Finn,'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-helprin/you-will-most-appreciate-freddy-and-fredericka-if-you-are-familiar/) [Mark Helprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-helprin/) > [You cannot succeed by yourself. It's hard to find a rich hermit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/you-cannot-succeed-by-yourself-it-s-hard-to-find-a-rich-hermit/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [“The hermit, without access to the news of the day, owes it to himself to be up to date on the doings of ancient…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvain-tesson/the-hermit-without-access-to-the-news-of-the-day-owes-it-to-himself/) [Sylvain Tesson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvain-tesson/) > [Dealing with people literally makes me sick to my stomach. Can I be a hermit yet?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dealing-with-people-literally-makes-me-sick-to-my-stomach-can-i-be-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I, who so love a hermit life for a good part of the day, find myself living in public, and almost losing my identity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-blackwell/i-who-so-love-a-hermit-life-for-a-good-part-of-the-day-find-myself/) [Elizabeth Blackwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-blackwell/) > [HERMIT, n. A person whose vices and follies are not sociable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/hermit-n-a-person-whose-vices-and-follies-are-not-sociable/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [Cancer and its aftermath changed my outlook in a profound way. I've become less of a hermit, and I travel more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-bates/cancer-and-its-aftermath-changed-my-outlook-in-a-profound-way-i-ve/) [Kathy Bates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-bates/) > [If U.S. air, naval, missile, and ground forces were not in and around Korea, and if we were not treaty-bound to fight alongside South…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-buchanan/if-u-s-air-naval-missile-and-ground-forces-were-not-in-and-around/) [Pat Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-buchanan/) ## More by Hollis Gillespie > [“Our duty," he said, "is to catapult each other into greatness!" We are not great yet, but at least we sometimes experience moments of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hollis-gillespie/our-duty-he-said-is-to-catapult-each-other-into-greatness-we-are-not/) [Hollis Gillespie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hollis-gillespie/) > [“But things never go according to plan. In fact, I think if you're really attached to controlling your future, you should plan for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hollis-gillespie/but-things-never-go-according-to-plan-in-fact-i-think-if-you-re/) [Hollis Gillespie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hollis-gillespie/) > [“That's the detail of the dead woman I always remember: her bare left foot, along with packets of Top Ramen and a torn box…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hollis-gillespie/that-s-the-detail-of-the-dead-woman-i-always-remember-her-bare-left/) [Hollis Gillespie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hollis-gillespie/) > [“...dismayed that I would pass up true adventure for the sake of a fake one I'd never get around to inventing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hollis-gillespie/dismayed-that-i-would-pass-up-true-adventure-for-the-sake-of-a-fake/) [Hollis Gillespie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hollis-gillespie/) > [“I'm sure you've heard people use the term, "You just don't get it." Well, I figured out the 'it' is the point in life.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hollis-gillespie/i-m-sure-you-ve-heard-people-use-the-term-you-just-don-t-get-it-well/) [Hollis Gillespie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hollis-gillespie/) [Explore all 6 Hollis Gillespie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hollis-gillespie/) ## More Crabs quotes > [“Crabs and medusas were my natural enemies. Crabs because I once got bitten on my bum as I had fallen asleep on a rock…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patric-juillet/crabs-and-medusas-were-my-natural-enemies-crabs-because-i-once-got/) [Patric Juillet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patric-juillet/) > [But she still had that something which fires the imagination, could still stop one's breath for a moment by a look or gesture that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/but-she-still-had-that-something-which-fires-the-imagination-could/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Marriage is a wrestling match where you hold on tight while your mate changes into a hundred different things. The trick is that you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/marriage-is-a-wrestling-match-where-you-hold-on-tight-while-your-mate/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [“Crabs and some shrimp, in contrast, will groom injured areas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-godfrey-smith/crabs-and-some-shrimp-in-contrast-will-groom-injured-areas/) [Peter Godfrey-Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-godfrey-smith/) > [I'm a big fish eater. Salmon - I love salmon. My sister loves Chinese food and sushi and all that. I'm not as big…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-fanning/i-m-a-big-fish-eater-salmon-i-love-salmon-my-sister-loves-chinese/) [Elle Fanning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-fanning/) > [My father was a preacher in Maryland and we had crab feasts - with corn on the cob, but no beer, being Methodist -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tori-amos/my-father-was-a-preacher-in-maryland-and-we-had-crab-feasts-with-corn/) [Tori Amos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tori-amos/) > [When a woman grabs my braids and says "How cute!" I crab her breast and say "How cute!" She never touches me again!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-means/when-a-woman-grabs-my-braids-and-says-how-cute-i-crab-her-breast-and/) [Russell Means](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-means/) > [In a recent interview, Hillary Clinton said that one of the jobs that prepared her to be president was sliming fish in Alaska. As…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-fallon/in-a-recent-interview-hillary-clinton-said-that-one-of-the-jobs-that/) [Jimmy Fallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-fallon/) > [“Oysters open completely when the moon is full; and when the crab sees one it throws a piece of stone or seaweed into it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/oysters-open-completely-when-the-moon-is-full-and-when-the-crab-sees/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Anyone who's onstage is going to attract a certain number of misguided people. But I was never very interested in groupies. Instead of thinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/anyone-who-s-onstage-is-going-to-attract-a-certain-number-of/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [“Doc was collecting marine animals in the Great Tide Pool on the tip of the Peninsula. It is a fabulous place: when the tide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/doc-was-collecting-marine-animals-in-the-great-tide-pool-on-the-tip/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [I wanna buy a bunch of hermit crabs and make them live together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demetri-martin/i-wanna-buy-a-bunch-of-hermit-crabs-and-make-them-live-together/) [Demetri Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demetri-martin/) > [She had only to stand in the orchard, to put her hand on a little crab tree and look up at the apples, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/she-had-only-to-stand-in-the-orchard-to-put-her-hand-on-a-little-crab/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [This hook nose and crab meister attitude has gotten me every job I've ever had. And more divorces than I care to remember.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-fell/this-hook-nose-and-crab-meister-attitude-has-gotten-me-every-job-i-ve/) [Norman Fell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-fell/) > [“Good,” Mapp said. “That’s very good. Eat some crabs. Grab Pilcher and smooch him on his face, go wild.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-harris/good-mapp-said-that-s-very-good-eat-some-crabs-grab-pilcher-and/) [Thomas Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-harris/) Browse all 139 Crabs quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We were all like a gaggle of hermit crabs without shells, flopping around trying to find ourselves. 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