ORIGINS: The word for shoe (ZAPATO) contains the word for duck (PATO). And the eels are there because the letter Z reminded us of them.
I am tired of dreaming without really going anywhere. I have decided to give up on water and air. This duckling will have both feet on the ground from now on. I will wear these heavy shoes, that won’t let me take to the sky, and would sink me to the bottom of the ocean if I were to ever dream again. And if somehow I were to lose them, I would still have this electric eel, to shock me and wake me up from that useless dream.
Why can’t I have beautiful things? Why do you have to ruin everything? Ducks were my favorite bird. I thought that they were a bridge, between the sky and the sea. Between dreams and life. I thought that ducks knew the magic trick to make dreams come true. But you ruined their name for me. You told me that ducking was avoiding, that it was running away. That birds didn’t grow wings to be able to dream, that they did it to fly far, far away, and leave everything else behind. And now every pair of shoes I wear makes me feel like a duck, because I should have avoided you, and that is the only thing I will do from now on.
I had a pair of boots that I loved more than anything. They made me feel like a duck in the water. In a sky that I could actually touch. They made me feel like everything was possible, like I could go anywhere. But I outgrew those boots. And no other pair has made me feel like that again. Comfortable. Confident. Full of dreams, and the courage to pursue them. Every road looks like an eel now. Like something twisted, full of frightening teeth. Electricity. Something undeniable, waiting to wake me up, in the most hurtful way possible.
I already have a duckling, I don’t need a divining rod. My duckling knows how to find water, it knows how to lead me to that river, where I will be able to swim and finally enjoy my life. I just need a pair of sturdy shoes, to be able to keep up, without falling behind and losing sight of my duckling, until we reach that river, where I can’t wait for my life to really begin.