Description
The Wood Turtle makes its way up the river bank after a long cold season spent in the mud. It is welcomed by the spring growth that carpets the ground. All winter it has dreamed of the sweet kisses of fresh foraged foods. The berries, worms, mushrooms, & sprouts have been calling to the slow, deliberate creature as it stayed warm & survived. It’s now time to resurface from the river & look for strawberries under starry skies🍓
This piece has had me contemplating the passing of time. Wood Turtles are native to the north eastern corner of North America. They live here in my home state of Minnesota where they are considered endangered. Sweet mama Wood Turtles only lay up-to one clutch of eggs a season. The small nests are prone to predation & human impacts. Wood Turtles face many of the same man-made issues that so many turtles face including being hit on the road. Even so, these Turtles persist, sleeping through the winter & waking in the early spring to go about their business in the steady way they do.
Aging hit me harder than normal this year. As a human with so much I want to achieve in my life I have been having to remind myself that life is not a race. I have a good life. Steady, full of joyful, deliberate moments. Each sip of tea, each delicious breeze through the soft whisper of the leaves is a strawberry kiss. The moments with my sweet husband & our perfect cat, the long conversations with my sister on the phone, those are all strawberry kisses. So I remind myself that there was a time when I was waiting in the mud dreaming of the juicy fresh berries & mystical emerald green sprouts that I am now surrounded by. There is time enough for it all🐢✨
On that soft note, I want to ask if you see a Turtle crossing the road this season to slow down & drive around it, or (if you can) help it cross in the direction it is going. It is a great deed that makes a person feel rather grand. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has a very quick & easy guide on how to help different turtles cross the road. Thank you for being a good human neighbor💚
