Burtle the Turtle

Once upon a time on a rocky island a few miles off the coast there lived a colony of turtles. They lived in little caves formed by the rocks and spent most of their time socializing with the other turtles on the beach. One of the turtles didn’t like to socialize very much, his name was Burtle and this is his story.

Burtle was a typical turtle, except for his scars from the accident. When Burtle was very young, he swam into a cluster of plastic rings and one of the rings got caught on Burtles shell. Nobody in the colony could remove the plastic and Burtle was told to just wait until it broke from his growing shell. Unfortunately, Burtle’s shell grew around the ring giving his shell a B shape instead of the normal round shell. Burtle wasn’t called Burtle before his shell started to resemble a B, but it’s been so long that nobody can remember his real name.

On the beach, Burtle became the brunt of the jokes with his strangely shaped shell. Jeff, the beach bully, would always find Burtle and say something mean about him in front of the other turtles. Oh how the other turtles would cackle with laughter. Burtle would try to ignore them and keep to himself, but every day brought pain and sadness.

Burtle woke up to a mostly cloudy day, though he could see a few pockets of blue throughout the sky. He left his rock home and headed toward the beach like his did every day. When he got to the fork in the road, he saw Jeff talking on the beach with a group of snickering turtles listening to his every word.

I’m so tired of this guy, thought Burtle, pausing for a moment to spy on the other turtles before they saw him. What if I just don’t go to the beach today? I have never even gone down this path that I pass every day! With a confident nod, Burtle took the left path for the first time.

The path led Burtle deeper into the brush. As he walked, the grasses and bushes started to get denser. Burtle came to a small opening with a single tree that looked like it had been dead for years, but it still stood. Standing under the tree was the largest turtle that Burtle had ever seen! The large turtle rose and turned to look at Burtle, a smile spreading across his wrinkled face.

In a voice halfway between a whisper and a wheeze, the large one said, “I am Master Poshy, the last tortoise on the island. Who are you?”

Burtle, a little startled to be talking to a real tortoise, responded with a nervous squeak, “I’m Burtle.”

“Why are you here, Burtle?” questioned the tortoise.

“I– I am avoiding someplace else,” stammered Burtle, still trying to calm his nerves.

“Is that all?” wheezed the old Master.

“Well…” Burtle began. Master Poshy nodded his encouragement.

“Well,” Burtle continued, “I guess I’m looking for something too. You see, my shell makes it hard for me to make friends because everyone just makes fun of it. I guess I was just looking for one day away from all that. One day where I don’t have to deal with being me!”

Master Poshy closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He opened his eyes and leaned in close so Burtle could hear him quietly say, “What you seek you will find in there.” The old tortoise gestured toward the trees. “You’ll travel until you see the fallen tree. Cross it then turn left and walk until you’ve come across a clearing with a stump in the middle.”

Burtle was confused by this. “How is a rock in the forest going to help me?” he sarcastically asked the old one.

“That is where your assignment begins!” Master Poshy wheeze-yelled. “You are to climb onto that stump and close your eyes. First, you must breathe with the wind. Next, you must sway with the trees. Then you will shine with the sun!”

At that moment, the sun shone down through a hole in the sky. Burtle looked up at the clouds but when he looked back down, the tortoise was gone. “Well,” thought Burtle, “I guess I’ll try that.”

Burtle entered the forest, found and crossed the fallen tree and entered the clearning with the stump in the middle. Burtle waded through the tall grasses and flowers to reach the stump sitting in the center of the clearing. Bits of sunlight shone through the clouds, the shadows of leaves danced on the grass, fading in and out of existence. Burtle climbed up and closed his eyes, he heard the old tortoise’s words in his mind.

First, you must breathe with the wind he thought. He took in a deep breath and released it. Breathe. He took another breath. Breathe.

Next, you must sway with the trees, thought Burtle. He began to push his body back and forth, Right, left, breathe. Right, left, breathe.

Well I’m doing 2 out of the 3 things and I don’t feel anything yet. Left, right Breathe. Well swaying and breathing definitely seem easier than shining, I don’t even know how to shine. Left, right, breathe. I’ll need to figure out how to shine if I want this silly breathing and swaying to pay off.

Burtle continued to sway and breathe on the stump, still unsure of how to shine like the tortoise told him. He swayed and breathed and swayed some more but he just couldn’t figure out how to shine. He was finally ready to give up when he decided to open his eyes. A cloud moved out of the sun’s way and Burtle was bathed in light. He looked at his bight suroundings and noticed how it was all so different, yet somehow still the same.

He saw the grass greener than he’d ever seen before. He saw the sky, bluer than he’d ever seen it before, the wind felt as though it hugged him as it passed. At that moment, Burtle the Deformed Turtle was not deformed, he wasn’t a turtle, he wasn’t even Burtle. He was just him. Joy welled up within him and he realized that he had done it. Then you will shine with the sun!

Burtle left the clearing with the stump in the middle and headed back toward the beach and his home, feeling more at peace than he had in years. He passed the old dead tree, hoping to tell the tortoise of his success, but he was nowhere to be seen. By the time Burtle got back to the fork in the road, the sun had nearly gone down. He decided to just go back to his rock home for the night.

In his dark cave steadily getting darker, Burtle stood and reflected on his day. He looked around to see the grey walls of his lonely home. He looked into the water to see the reflection of his deformed shell. Burtle got mad and shouted, “No matter what I do, I’ll still always have to come back to this terrible reality!”

With a sigh, Burtle closed his eyes to try the old tortoise’s advice again. Right, left, breathe. Hopefully it’ll work away from the clearing with the stump in the middle. Left, right, breathe. I wonder how long I’m supposed to do this. Right, left, breathe. When Burtle opened his eyes, expecting to shine with the sun, he still found himself in his empty home. It was even darker from the approaching night.

“No, no, no!” yelled Burtle, “It’s supposed to be different! It’s supposed to be better!”

Later that night, Burtle thought about the clearing with the stump in the middle and how he hadn’t taken notice of its beauty until he was shining with the sun. The clearing with the stump in the middle stayed the same, it was me that changed, thought Burtle as he stood back up to try again. Left, right, breathe, Right, breathe, left. Breathe, right, left.

Burtle opened his eyes slowly, one at a time. When they were both open, he saw the dark rocks and dark water but this time he saw a glimmer of light on the water. He looked closer at the glimmers and then raised his head to see the sky full of stars. Burtle lost himself in that view, melting away to become just him again.

Burtle the Turtle changed after that day. Jeff’s insults didn’t seem to bother him anymore and he eventually stopped trying when he realized nobody would laugh anymore. Burtle also started to make friends with the other turtles. He would get so lost in conversation that he would forget about his deformed shell. Burtle’s life mostly stayed the same, but it changed completely.

That is the story of how Burtle the Turtle found his way to happiness. I hope you enjoyed it and if you want to find your own happiness, just remember the Ancient Creed of the Tortoises:

You must breathe with the wind and sway with the trees, then you will shine with the sun!

Beauty can be seen by all who choose to see it.

Occupy your mind to free it from yourself.

Observe the Beauty with your mind free.