By Eric DouglasThe kids had been back in school for about a month, and tomorrow would be the first day of fall. The kids had watched the sea turtle nest site for several days, but the eggs hadn’t shown any sign of hatching. They were growing concerned that something had happened to the eggs that first night and that they weren’t going to hatch.Jayne and Marie’s parents told them to be patient. A full moon was rising out over the water and all the lights on the houses facing the beach were turned down or off. They did that so the baby turtles wouldn’t get confused and crawl away from the water, heading toward the lights instead of the moon. The girls’ parents took them down to the beach to watch. It was a school night, but their parents made an exception to their bedtime for this special event.It took a while and Marie was the only one who was patient enough to see the first baby turtle break through the sand. The little turtle saw the full moon and followed it straight to the water. Before long, more and more hatchlings followed the first and crawled toward the water. “Daddy, look at them,” Marie said, holding her father’s hand. “They are so tiny.”“I’ve counted 30 so far, and they just keep coming out of the sand,” Jayne exclaimed. “This is so cool.”In case the babies hatched, the girls had spent time before the sunset smoothing out the sand that led to the water. Sand castles and tire tracks can trap hatchlings and keep them from making it to the water.They were also making sure the birds stayed away while the babies crossed the sand.“Do you think they’ll make it Mommy? Will they live?” Marie asked, wiping a tear off her cheek.“Some of them will sweetie. Not all of them, but a few. You guys have helped them out a lot by protecting them this far and making sure they made it to the water safely. It’s up to Mother Nature now,” her mother said.“Well, I’ll be waiting for them to come back,” Marie said. “Then I can help them again when they build their own nests.”“We all will,” her mother said.*****While Marie was more excited about the birth of the baby turtles, every day after school Jayne checked on Mother, the turtle they had rescued. The kids had decided to name her Mother since she did so much to make sure her babies were safe. Jayne talked to Mother and told her to get better soon. Mother made rapid progress.The next spring, when she was healthy, the family joined a group of other volunteers on the research centre’s boat to release her into the ocean. Mother had put on weight in the clinic and weighed more than 300 pounds — back to her normal weight.“Friends, this is a special day for the research centre and my family. We had only been here a week when we found this turtle; now she is ready to return to the ocean and continue living her life. As we release her back into the waves we must remember to protect these wonderful animals both when they are in the ocean and when they are on the beaches,” Jayne’s father said. “Now, my oldest daughter, Jayne, will do the honours of releasing the turtle back into the ocean.”The turtle was swinging from a winch above the deck of the boat. Jayne’s father pushed the animal out over the water while Jayne untied the rope that held it in place. With a gentle splash, the turtle dropped the last foot into the water and immediately began to push clear of the ropes. Jayne ran to the edge of the boat and waved.“Bye, Mother! Good luck and I hope you find your babies,” she shouted over the cheering of the volunteers.For a moment, the sea turtle seemed to pause and look at her, as if she recognised Jayne’s voice. Then, with a powerful flip of her fins, the animal dove beneath the waves.SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT1. Explain why it was important that the lights on the houses facing the beach were turned down or off.2. What did the kids do to help the baby sea turtles make it to the sea?3. Do you like the name the kids chose for the original rescued sea turtle?4. How do you think these children have been changed by this experience?5. The author, Eric Douglas, also writes a column for Scuba Diving Magazine titled “Lessons for Life”. What are the life lessons contained in this story?