I have a soft spot for turtles. They’re one of my favorite animals—probably why I liked the “Natural Wonders” feature in our first issue of Mysterious Ways magazine so much. So I was horrified by the news story earlier this week about some pranksters who taped a poor box turtle to a bunch of balloons and sent him flying. He got stuck in a tree in Oceanside, California, where neighborhood residents spotted him.
Fortunately, someone was looking out for the shell-shocked turtle. Just as firefighters arrived with a ladder truck to rescue it, a gust of wind blew the turtle from the tree and carried it safely to the ground. The turtle survived its adventure with no ill effects.
I actually had my own experience with a turtle this past weekend, but it didn’t occur to me or anyone else there to cause mischief. Rather, we received the extraordinary opportunity to help one of God’s creatures.
I was at a friend’s lake house in Montrose, Pennsylvania. Saturday morning, we were eating breakfast on the screened-in porch when we heard a loud clang. We turned to the porch door that led out to the deck overlooking the lake… and saw an enormous snapping turtle, banging his muddy body against the railing and a metal watering can.
We watched with fascination as the turtle clawed at the railing and stretched his long, leathery neck between the wooden posts. That’s when we all realized—the turtle wanted to get to the lake… but he’d made a wrong turn and ended up trapped on the deck instead. He didn’t seem to understand the only way to get down (without climbing over the railing and dropping 15 feet) was to go back the way he came and pad down the grassy hill toward the water.
We weren’t sure what to do. At first, we tried leading him in the right direction, offering him lettuce and blueberries. He seemed more interested in snapping our fingers off. We called the local police, but they didn’t seem that interested in helping. Finally, my friend’s father came up with the idea to get a rake and try to nudge the turtle along on the right path.
The stubborn turtle dug his claws into the wood, but we managed to pull him back onto the grass. He slowly craned his neck and looked around. Now he seemed to understand. After a moment, he began waddling down the hill toward the lake.
We cheered him the whole way down. Finally, at the water’s edge, he stepped off the rocks and flipped into the water. Seconds later we saw him swim deep into the lake, snapping at a lily pad on his way. We hooted and hollered, wishing him well.
Such a random way to start our Saturday morning. But I couldn’t help but see the experience as, yes, a perfect metaphor for Mysterious Ways. We all know where we want to get to—that lake of our dreams—but sometimes the path we choose is not the one that will get us there. Sometimes it takes someone bigger than us, who can see the path clearly, to reach out and tug at us—our claws digging in the whole way—until we finally see the right direction to go.
I couldn’t resist making this video of our mission to help get the turtle home. I’m a Star Wars fan, so I hope you’ll forgive me for my choice of soundtrack…
Have you tried to get someplace, only to find an unexpected obstacle in your way? Did your detour actually lead you down a better path to your goal? Share your story with us!
