Tag Archive: emunah

Heartwarming Mussar from a Two-legged Turtle!

The following story recently took place in Brazil: A turtle had an unfortunate run-in with an electric fence. Ultimately, veterinarians were left with no choice but to amputate BOTH of the turtle’s front legs. Facing a life slower than even a normal pokey turtle pace, the team at Veterinary Hospital of Uberaba came up with a creative solution—wheels! With the help of two wheels typically used for office furniture, the hapless turtle was back on the move, wheeling around the hospital in no time.

I believe this story is something we all can learn from! Turtles are known to be incredibly slow.

This Brazilian turtle was seemingly doomed to live a life as: The Slowest Turtle Known to Mankind!

And yet, due to a healthy dose of effort and persistence on the account of the veterinarians to not give up on this hapless turtle—he will be able to carry on with life for many years to come. This episode reminds me of the famous quote from Denis Waitley who states, “the results you achieve will be in direct proportion to the effort you apply!” In this instance the veterinarians put a great amount of effort and thought into how they could restore a semblance of normalcy for this little turtle. In so doing, they accomplished their goal, and by extension, taught us all a lesson as well.

You see, if on a particular day you find yourself feeling a bit down—think of this cute turtle! After all, even if you feel like there is no hope…all you need is a bit of effort, persistence, and belief that the Ultimate Doctor—Hashem—is looking out for our best—and wallah there will be a new set of wheels right around the corner that will help us be back up and running!


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