At night she didn't have to walk far to watch the locals, high on cac-X, play volleyball late into the night on the beach. Night after night, she would sit on the sand, favorite Cabernet in hand, and watch the games. And so it went for her first two weeks in Israel. It had been perfect weather--indeed, she was glad she had taken this posting from her employer. She imagined vacationing here when she was finished with her assignment.
She had just finished her Cabernet when she noticed that it started to rain. Not a heavy rain, but just enough to spoil her mood. The rain didn't stop the volleyball game though. However, rather than a volleyball it appeared that the players were tossing a dark object back and forth over the net. When Susie got up to look at the object it became apparent that it was not a ball at all, but a round turtle who frantically wiggled his legs in pain and fear.
"They always come out in the rain, isn't it hilarious? We wedge their heads with a block so they can't go back into their shell---wanna play?,"asked one of the men throwing the turtle across the net.
Susie felt sorry for the reptile. And enraged. In a voice she didn't know she had, she chastised the players for injuring the poor animal. Then, further surprising herself, as if on autopilot, she picked with the animal and carried it to the beach. She watched the evening tide carry the frightened animal away.
Still shaking with excitement for what she did, when she got back to her hotel room, it dawned on her that she had been crazy to pick up the turtle. What if it had bitten her? Reptiles had always scared her. Why did she pick it up? Why did she put it in the surf? Did she drown it? Then again, with further reflection, a voice inside her whispered that she had done the right thing.
She had just finished her Cabernet when she noticed that it started to rain. Not a heavy rain, but just enough to spoil her mood. The rain didn't stop the volleyball game though. However, rather than a volleyball it appeared that the players were tossing a dark object back and forth over the net. When Susie got up to look at the object it became apparent that it was not a ball at all, but a round turtle who frantically wiggled his legs in pain and fear.
"They always come out in the rain, isn't it hilarious? We wedge their heads with a block so they can't go back into their shell---wanna play?,"asked one of the men throwing the turtle across the net.
Susie felt sorry for the reptile. And enraged. In a voice she didn't know she had, she chastised the players for injuring the poor animal. Then, further surprising herself, as if on autopilot, she picked with the animal and carried it to the beach. She watched the evening tide carry the frightened animal away.
Still shaking with excitement for what she did, when she got back to her hotel room, it dawned on her that she had been crazy to pick up the turtle. What if it had bitten her? Reptiles had always scared her. Why did she pick it up? Why did she put it in the surf? Did she drown it? Then again, with further reflection, a voice inside her whispered that she had done the right thing.
The weeks went by. She no longer watched the volleyball games. Susie became more introspective and spent more time in her room. One cloudless night, however, when the stars were bright in the sky she walked out again on the beach--pointedly ignoring the volleyball players.
Susie walked down to a remote area of the beach where she saw an old man fishing with a bamboo pole. Maintaining a respectful distance, she watched the old man cast an empty hook him into the night surf over and over without effect. After she watched quietly for a number of minutes, she moved in closer to speak.
"Pardon me sir," she said quietly, "what do you hope to catch with an empty hook?"
"I have already caught when I sought to catch," grinned the toothless old man, smiling in her direction.
Susie's initial feeling of fear quickly vanished as the old man's eyes glittered like sapphires in the evening sky.
Susie's initial feeling of fear quickly vanished as the old man's eyes glittered like sapphires in the evening sky.
"Come," he said, "I am but a servant. And my master would like to speak with you."
And with that, the old man unclasped his robe and ran briskly into the surf, motioning for Susie to follow. As his body submerged in the water, she noticed that his hands and feet metamorphosed into fins and gills. Quickly, and strangely unafraid, she caught up with the man, grabbed on to his back fin, and they both disappeared under the water.
END CHAPTER ONE
END CHAPTER ONE
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