Thyra’s story of Alfie, a turtle who escapes in order to find his owner the perfect birthday gift, was cleverly told from the turtle’s perspective opening up the opportunity to imagine how big our world might seem to a small turtle! In the story the turtle thought he was gone only a short while as he took a nap during a cold spell (aka Winter) and awoke to find the perfect gift to give to his owner — a whole year later!
This story was particularly heartfelt as Wendy’s real turtle, Rusty managed to escape and disappear in late September. Not being a native of the New England area, it was feared that somehow he would not survive our frigid cold Winters. So, as you can imagine, it was a tremendous surprise to find Rusty, alive and well in her garden this past vacation week! Sharing this story with the children along with re-reading Thyra’s story about Alfie, the children were eager to meet Rusty and discover a bit more about these roaming turtles!
