Turtles are interesting animals. Their long lifespan makes them appear old and wise, and their slow movements are charged with strength. As a kid, turtles fascinated me, and although owls have taken their place as my favorite animals, they still inspire a sense of amazement in me. Specifically, a quirk I noticed in the behavior of the two turtles my family owned when I was around ten years old. Over the course of the several months we had them for, they somehow escaped the walls of what should have been a high-enough tank for them multiple times. We—as in my mom, my dad, my sister and me—never actually saw them do it, but we would notice they were missing, and eventually find them somewhere else in the apartment. Sometimes they would disappear for a few hours, other times they would be gone for days. Their hiding spots ranged from the corners of our rooms to underneath the living room table, their tiny heads poking out and staring at us like they knew we were tired of having to look for them.

Although this behavior was a bit puzzling to us at first, I think it had a lot to do with them hating the tank they were, essentially, trapped in. Turtles are not meant to stay within a confined space for long periods of time, but my family did not have the freedom to leave them out. That’s why I think they just got tired of their “prison” and once they learned they could get out, they took advantage of it. Animals, I think, can really enhance their abilities if it means getting out of a situation or an environment they dislike.