Turtle Tracks In The Sky

A sunny afternoon filled with cotton candy like clouds overshadowed the deep valley.

The world appeared to be larger than the sky from such a low altitude and perspective.

I reached down and picked up a box turtle and looked for carved initials on its bottom shell.

Bill and I carved ‘B.T.’ and ‘C.T’. on every turtle we found on our farm.

This one was a blank, a virgin, a foreigner.

I grabbed my pocket knife and carved C.G.T. I held the shell up to the little sky, nestled between mountain ridges on both sides, and watched a jet fly over. Its tail matched the clouds and looked like a pen writing a message in the clouds.

I threw the turtle into our pond and watched little waves on the pool’s surface spell out the Theory of Relativity.

And pretended to be talking to Jesus as a child.