"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax--
Of cabbages--and kings--
And why the sea is boiling hot--
And whether pigs have wings." - Lewis Carroll, The Walrus and the Carpenter from Through the Looking-Glass and what Alice Found There.
I know I haven't mentioned this to very many people lately...I'm still sort of in denial about all of it. Just not ready to come to terms with it enough myself to warrant telling everyone else about it as well, you know? But...I think I'm ready to finally break the news to all of you...
The time has come, my little friends...to set Simon free.
Yes, you heard me right. I will be letting him go tomorrow evening. A while back, I contacted a few nature reserve scientists of whatever, and they said it would be best if I let him go. Well, tomorrow Dan and I are heading back up to Wheatland, up near where he's originally from. I've always felt it only right that if we're going to let him go, it might as well be near where we found him. I figure he'll be more likely to find his own kind of there than if I let him go somewhere down here.
All that aside...I am not ready to let him go. Over the past year, I have grown attached to that little guy - about as attached as you can get to a turtle anyways. Last year, he came along just when I needed him to in my life. I had recently lost Magee, and Simon was exactly what I needed to fill that hole in my life with Magee gone. The best thing about having Simon was that I didn't have to share him with anyone, like I had to with Magee.
I have loved every minute of having Simon. It was amazing watching him grow! Sometimes I wouldn't even notice how big he was getting because I saw him every day. The 3 1/2 inch, energetic turtle I have now is a far cry from the shy little guy I brought home last year - barely the size of the palm of my hand!! I remember being very worried in the beginning because I didn't know if I was taking care of him well at all! I couldn't get him to eat anything and I was so worried he was going to starve himself! But, we both figured each other out, and things have gone great since.
Simon was about the absolute cutest when he learned to eat food out of my hands! He'd try to nibble my fingers, thinking they were food. When he did find food he could eat, he'd make the silliest chomping faces! He definitely was fun to watch!
SO...it has been a year. Tomorrow I lose my buddy, a.k.a the cutest turtle in the world. I am definitely not ready to let him go, but I don't really have a choice. The longer I wait to let him go, the harder it will be when the time actually comes. I won't want to let him go...and he'll be less likely to adapt back to nature.
I'll miss you, Simon. It's been fun.