fred

It was a warm day on the west coast. Jody was diligently doing her dishes in her quaint little 1.5 bedroom basement suite. Her door and window were open; it was too beautiful a day to let it pass without exposing the house to the fresh air. The sky was blue, not a cloud in site. The wind was blowing through the trees; it brought the country sounds to Jody's ears, in the city. She felt like she was back home on the acreage.

Her childhood house was surrounded by more than three acres of beautifully placed trees, gardens, and flowers. The trees, now 35 years old, would blow in the wind; the leaves would rustle and fill the air with the sounds of nature. the trees would creek as the rocked to and fro, rubbing against each other. The sounds of rustling trees made Jody feel safe; she was at home.

As the wind picked up she could hear items in the back yard, just outside her apartment window, blowing a round. She went to see if there was anything she should tie down, but it was all good; there was nothing to worry about; everything appeared to be normal.

Jody went back to fighting her nemesis; the bubbles were fresh, her hands were getting pruney, and the dish rack was filling quickly (Jody is fast at doing dishes!). The wind was rushing through the basement suite and papers, flags, and photos that were not framed were dancing out of their normal placement. Jody thought nothing of these noises.

The last batch of dishes, finally finished and drying in the rack. It was now time to sweep the floor. But what is that in the middle of the kitchen? It looks like a turtle. Jody laughs to herself, "there is no turtle in her kitchen." She takes a second look. It is a turtle; he is alive, too! Jody races through the house looking to hunt down the kids who placed Fred on the floor in Jody's kitchen. There was no one around; not a single person on the property, and yet there was a turtle... in her kitchen!

The noises now became clear. It wasn't sounds of objects moving that she heard, over top her country music, while doing the dishes, it was aturtle scraping himself over her step to get into the house.

Jody was stoked, so excited! She always wanted to save turtles... but who though it would be, A. in Canada, B. from her own home! After taking many photos, and proudly carrying Fred around in a red bucket Jody returned Fred to the wild. She also took video of the release party... Who knows when she would save her next turtle!

That is the story of Fred...

Goodnight.