So a rabbit, a squirrel and a turtle are on the side of the
road. Yes, I know this sounds like the beginning of a bad joke but it’s really
the sight my son and I came across the other morning. Since it’s summer (I
believe I've already expressed my disdain for this time of year), my son stays
with my mom some days. They live on a golf course and have all sorts of
wildlife, so it’s not like this was a complete shock. It was odd though,
especially since the squirrel almost ran in front of my car and then thought
better of it but the turtle took a shaky step onto the road, just in time for
me to veer around him. I'll have to stop on the way back, I thought as I drove but
to my surprise, I didn’t. A car was pulled off to the side and a teenage boy
was walking the turtle to the safety of the grass where it belonged. And I don't
mean picking it up and traumatizing the poor thing. I mean walking very slowly
behind it, encouraging it to not give up and making sure it got where it was
going. The boy’s mother and I made eye contact as I passed by and I gave her
the nod and a smile. I was hoping to convey ‘you've got a good kid there, lady’
with that smile and nod. I hope I did.
If you've held more than a five-minute conversation with me,
you've likely heard me declare that I hate people. I do. We're wretched for the
most part and a plague on this planet. I get so upset when I watch the news
that I either cry or curse. Someone stealing from someone, killing someone,
hurting someone, it’s a continuous cycle of disgusting behavior and I get more
and more sickened by it the older I get…and then there’s this kid, saving the
life of a turtle and his obviously late for work mom watching on with a smile. I want to believe in us. I want to believe we
can do better, be better. So I shall try to see the better side of things, one
turtle at a time.
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