Turtle tales....part 1

Once a lady told me that she was writing a book about animals from a biblical perspective. She said that there were animals that could teach us very valuable lessons.

This must be true, since Proverbs tells us to consider the ant. Ants are some of the smallest creatures but they teach us a huge lesson about hard work and togetherness....God is so awesome!

I remember a pet turtle my daughter had. She told her boyfriend once that she liked turtles and he bought her one for Christmas! While we were out of town, he called to tell her, her gift had arrived.

I didn't think much of it....I like turtles too and didn't think it would be a problem. We got home and there she was. My daughter likes Etta James and named her in honor of her. Etta (the turtle..lol)was a petite little red eared slider with black shiny eyes.....she would peer at you...real mean like ....lol She wasn't afraid of us at all.

My daughter's boyfriend said that she had arrived via UPS from North Carolina in a Big Mac type container. They opened the container...it was full of peat moss. They said she parted the peat moss with her tiny sturdy limbs...and looked up right into their faces as if to say, "I made it y'all!!" Real Etta James like...lol. Boyfriend's mother said, "Oh I like her!"....lol

One weekend my daughter went away and informed me that I would have to watch her. Turtles are a huge responsibility....you have to feed them, change their water constantly...play with them, etc.

That rainy Saturday morning, I went to her tank and picked her up. She clawed and scratched, trying to pry herself from my grip. She stared at me...real doubtful like....I stared back at her.Why you so mean?, I said. She scratched me in response. I put my face close to hers and pursed my lips as if to kiss her (I didn't...I aint crazy..lol) and smacked "mwah"...she looked at me....and smacked back..."mwah" Uh huh...this aint just happen, I thought in my down home way....I did it again...."mwah"...."mwah" she smacked back.

Etta and I had fun that day. She became my baby....lol. I would feed her....I even took her to the Vet....when she got sick. The nurse at the Vet made a file and wanted to take a picture of Etta and I....to put on the front. Uh huh, that's a bit much, I thought. The Vet said Etta had become bored with her food and needed protein added to her diet.

I rushed out and bought her tiny blood worms and fish. This was certainly what she needed as she grew and became healthier.

Etta bought me so much joy....she love swimming laps at night in her tank...she would get under her sun lamp and *sun bathe* I would watch her swim and swim until I'd fall asleep.

Once, I was getting ready to leave the house and had to run upstairs to my bedroom to get something. She heard me coming upstairs and peered up at me as I walked in the door. I searched the bedroom looking for the item (probably my keys..lol) and she swam from one end of the tank to the other, following me.

I would frequently wash my hands in a lemon scented hand soap (you should constantly wash your hands while handling turtles) Etta would take a deep whiff of my hand, inhaling the lemony mist that would rest in my palm. She'd fall fast asleep, in that lemon scented valley...lol

I loved that mean green thing.

We used to keep her tank in the dining room. Sometimes I would get up in the middle of the night to go downstairs to pray (and check on Etta) One night I found her sound asleep, with her claws clutching the side of her rock. Her tiny shell was in the water (which was ice cold, but shouldn't have been) only her head was above water.

Her position spoke to me: No matter how dangerous the waters of affliction are, we must cling to the ROCK...CHRIST

Don't know how she managed to stay alive that night. Turtles aren't strong swimmers. She didn't have the strength to climb to the top of the huge rock she could only cling to the side. Etta was real trooper. That's when I decided to put her tank upstairs in my room, so we could watch out for each other, when the nighttime waters were cold and icy.

She came at a time in my life when I need so much peace. I had just gone through a very painful separation and had to immediately become the caregiver for a sick loved one. I was drained and depleted.

I did some research on baby turtles and found out that each one has their own unique personality. They find it difficult to trust. They are separated from their mothers and don't have anyone to care for them. Their eggs are buried in the sand and if they make it....which lot of them don't because other animals will eat their eggs....they have to fight to stay alive.

Much like my life, I thought.

I loved Etta but never got the sense that she completely trusted me. She was mean, feisty and skeptical.

One morning we put warm water in her tank....she loved the warm water and begin to swim her morning laps.....she swam back and forth.....back and forth....pausing briefly to give us a suspicious glance. Now she had grown much because of all the care we gave her and it was now time for a bigger tank. We had planned to get the tank...that day I think.

Anyway, she turned to take another lap in her tank and ran head on into the huge rock that she sunbathed on! Whew! that must have really hurt, I thought. I could tell by the way she was moving she was in pain. In her painful state...it was like she became confused and swam into the rock again....this time killing herself.

We have to be careful what we do in pain. Pain can cloud our judgment and make us delusional...causing us to create more pain.

At first, I thought she was resting. She had become real still...but when I checked on her later...she was dead.

In case you're wondering...no we didn't cry but we were very sad. Tiny as she was....she had become apart of our family. She took my mind off of my troubles and gave me a *project* to work on....I had considered getting goldfish or some plants or making a vegetable garden on the patio...Etta was more interesting than those things.

Women are nurturers and feel the need to do so during painful, lonely times.

To make a long story short.....we buried her in my daughter's boyfriend's backyard. It was so funny his mom had gotten attached to her as well.....they cared for her when we were out of town and when Christmas came that year...his mom had gone to the dollar store to buy wrapping paper and purchased a tiny doll outfit for Etta....lol....this is a true story folks...lol

Now I didn't go to the burial...lol....I went to work....they dug a nice place in their flower garden for her....my daughter's *mother in law*....lol....had bought a turtle made of stone to place in her garden. They buried Etta underneath.

After the burial, they called to ask why I didn't come to the funeral. I reminded them that I had to work. They said they were about the have the repast...lol