The tail of Madame Tortuga

Far more than just a logo, Madame Tortuga is a survivor. Our time together was only a few weeks, but the lesson she taught me will last a lifetime. This is the legend of Madame Tortuga.

Back in the good old bad days, I was an LPN. Most of my career was spent working in long-term care on the night shift. At the time, I was also married to the type of person I wouldn’t let in my life now. Both had already pushed me past the point of burnout, but I couldn’t imagine anything else at the time. My identity was wrapped around nursing even as I saw myself failing. I believed in my vow till death do us part, even as I was suicidal.

One day, as I was driving home from what would be my last nursing job, I saw a turtle on its back. There had been a lot of turtles on this road. I had been stopping to move turtles out of the road 10 times every trip home. You just move them off the road in the direction they were pointing and move on. Not this time. I found her on her back and took her home. I wasn’t conscious of why I had done that till I realized she couldn’t pull her leg in her shell.

When I took her to the vet. They said she had likely survived an attack from some bird of prey. The leg she couldn’t pull in her shell was broken and gangrenous. The choices were to leave her there to be put to sleep or to let them amputate the leg and take her in. I will say the vet only charged me for the meds and tools they had to use.

I love turtles, but I had never kept one as a pet, so I had no idea what I was doing. I pulled together what I could. Turtles need sunlight for their shells to grow right. You can buy special lamps. The ex wasn’t going to let me spend any more of his drinking money on a wild animal. He also wouldn’t help walk the dogs. I put her in a flower bed I didn’t think she could get out of, and kept an eye on her. She waited till she was healed up. Then she packed her shell and left. She was gone in 5 minutes. I looked for hours in that flower bed that she had never gotten out of before.

I guess she won that race. Just in the time I knew her, she had survived an attack from an unknown bird of prey, lying on her back for an unknown amount of time, an amputation, and my care. Then she just walked out. That got me thinking, if a three-legged turtle can get free, so can I. Not too long after that, I walked out too.

Turtles can live a long time. Sometimes I wonder if she’s out there thinking about the strange person who saved her. I know I will always think of the turtle that saved me. That is why the name of my logo is Madam Tortuga.