🦈 Meet Bob

"Oh... hi. I'm Bob. You can come a little closer if you want. I know the whole hammerhead-shark thing can be a bit much at first. I do have a smile... it's just underneath. Terrible design, really."

🌊 A Few Little Facts About Me

📏 From Nose to Tail
14 inches

↔️ From Fin to Fin
7 inches

⚖️ As Light As...
4.3 ounces... about as much as a pretty pebble from the ocean floor.

🦈 A Little About Me

💙 Favorite Color
Sea Glass Blue

🦐 Favorite Snack
Tiny shrimp crackers. They're crunchy, salty, and significantly less intimidating than my teeth.

🐚 Favorite Hobby
Collecting seashells. I organize them by color, although I occasionally change my mind and start all over again.

🫧 Favorite Game
Bubble Catch. I'm terrible at it. Apparently bubbles don't particularly want to be caught.

😊 I Smile When...
Someone who was nervous around me realizes they don't need to be.

🐠 I'm Really Good At...
Giving people a chance before deciding who they are.

🌊 My Biggest Dream
To find a friend who doesn't need me to look friendlier, smile more, or become easier to understand before deciding I'm worth getting to know.

💙 My Biggest Fear
That someone will decide who I am before they ever get close enough to know me.

🤗 Something You Should Know About Me
Sometimes people ask me what's wrong when absolutely nothing is wrong. This is just my face. 😂 My smile happens to be underneath my head, but I promise it's there. I'm actually pretty happy with my quiet little life. I'd just really like someone to share it with.

💙 A Little From My Heart

"Being a hammerhead shark can make introductions a little complicated.

Sometimes I see someone I'd really like to meet, so I start swimming toward them.

And then they swim away.

Really fast.

I used to wonder what I was doing wrong.

Maybe I should swim slower.

Maybe I shouldn't get so close.

Maybe there was something about me that made friendship harder.

But eventually I realized something.

They didn't know me yet.

They saw a hammerhead shark.

They saw my shape, my size, and everything they had already heard about sharks.

And they filled in the rest of my story without ever asking me.

The funny thing is, if they'd stayed a little longer, they might have discovered that I collect seashells.

They might have learned that I'm terrible at catching bubbles.

They might have noticed that I always move over when someone needs a place beside me.

And eventually, if they looked underneath this enormous head of mine...

They would have found my smile.

Being misunderstood has taught me something important.

I never want someone else to feel like I decided who they were before they had the chance to show me.

So I try to look a little closer.

I ask questions.

I listen.

And I leave room for someone to surprise me.

Because sometimes the person you were unsure about...

becomes the friend you're really glad you didn't swim away from."

With love,

Bob 💙

💙 Bob's Heart Message

"There's always more to someone than what you see first."