A Sea Turtle Story
Chapter 5: The Big Day!
The story so far: Pancake, a hurt loggerhead turtle, is taken to a sea turtle hospital after she is rescued and treated. At the hospital, a young girl named Lolly bonds with Pancake. Pancake is getting well until, suddenly, one day she stops using her flipper. After a long period of rehabilitation, Pancake regains the use of her flipper and may be well enough to be released. But is Lolly ready to let her sea turtle friend go?
That next week, Dr. Andy came to visit the turtle hospital to check on all the patients, but especially to check on Pancake! That day, he would determine if she was ready to be released.
Lolly helped Dr. Andy by keeping Pancake calm while he checked her over thoroughly.
“You are a good helper,” Dr. Andy said. “You have a way with all the turtles, especially Pancake.”
“I like the turtles,” Lolly responded, adding, “and Pancake’s my favorite!”
The doctor finished examining Pancake’s shell. “Very good,” he muttered, as he worked. “Yes, she’s healed nicely.”
Next, Dr. Andy checked the sea turtle’s front flipper. Pancake wiggled her front flippers and squirmed on the table.
“I see her flipper is healed too!” Dr. Andy laughed, holding on to the big turtle.
“Pancake’s better, isn’t she?” Lolly asked.
“She sure is,” the doctor answered, smiling, “thanks to you and everyone at the turtle hospital. Her carapace is healed; her flipper is strong and working just fine. She’s ready to be released back to the ocean.”
Lolly couldn’t help smiling too. It made her feel good to know that she had done her part to help Pancake!
The hospital was in a flurry. Preparations for Pancake’s release had to be made. There were a lot of details to attend to. Everyone was busy.
Lolly was busy too. It was almost the end of the school year, and she was occupied with end of year activities. It was also the start of her mom’s bookstore’s peak season. There was much to do!
But Lolly found time to visit her special friend every chance she got. She wanted to spend as much time as she could with Pancake before she was released. Lolly looked in the turtle tank. Pancake looked well and happy.
“It won’t be long now until you can go back home,” Lolly told Pancake. “It will be great. You can eat and swim to your heart’s content!” Lolly smiled down at her special charge. She felt happy and a little sad all mixed together!
“We all did a good job, huh, kiddo,” Jan said, coming up behind Lolly. For a moment, she and the young girl quietly watched the totally recovered sea turtle. Each was lost in her own private thoughts.
Soon the big day arrived! Everyone was there to see Pancake off. All the staff from the sea turtle hospital turned out. Many members of the community were there to show their support too. Even people who didn’t live at the beach had traveled for miles to watch the sea turtle release. And of course Lolly was there.
Quite a crowd gathered on the beach waiting for the sea turtle. Pancake was the star of the moment! Newspaper reporters and people from TV stations turned out to record the exciting event. Pancake was going to be in the newspaper––and on the six o’clock news.
But before Pancake was released, the doctors were giving her one last check-up. Then she was scrubbed, measured, weighed and tagged. The tag was put on Pancake so people could identify her if she was spotted again. The tagging process was painless, and the new tag wouldn’t get in Pancake’s way at all.
Soon Pancake was ready to go home! A cheer went up from the crowd when they spotted Pancake. Everyone was happy for the sea turtle.
The hospital staff placed Pancake on the sandy beach, pointing her in the direction of her home – the ocean. Lolly stood close behind Pancake.
The reporters with their cameras struggled to get a good shot of the sea turtle. People took pictures. Everyone gathered around; they all wanted to be able to see the sea turtle being released.
The turtle hospital staff followed Pancake, keeping the onlookers at a safe distance. Pancake crawled slowly and awkwardly toward the water, shuffling her heavy body across the sand.
On land, Pancake was clumsy and slow. But once she was in the water, Pancake swam quickly through the surf despite her long stay at the hospital. She swam gracefully out toward the
open sea as if she had never been injured at all!
Lolly waved goodbye as she watched her special friend go. She felt a little sad – she would miss Pancake. But she knew that Pancake was going home where she belonged. And that made Lolly very happy!
The crowd gave a loud cheer as Pancake swam away. Everyone stood on the beach and watched until Pancake was out of sight. Slowly the crowd trickled away.
Lolly was left alone on the beach staring out at the vast blue ocean. It had been a big day! All the hard work had paid off. Pancake was finally home.
But Lolly couldn’t help wondering… Would Pancake be all right?
To be continued Tuesday, June 12 Next Time: Pancake Returns!