Mother Saint Martin and the Sea Turtles

Syed Raiyan Abu Zafar

The baby turtles were ready to be hatched, while more eggs were being lined up by the mother turtles. All the while the sea was busy playing, making high waves going up and down, so high as to sometimes pull down the fishermen with their horrible fishing nets.
One or two fishermen fell into the sea and pushed it back with their hands. “Get away from me!” the fishermen said. Then something really horrible happened. Some young sea turtles got their tiny feet stuck in the square holes of the net.
“Oh help! Someone help,” cried the mother turtle. No one but the white salty waves heard the poor turtle. “Now, we must rush to the Bay and let Mother Saint Martin know. Come along, ride on us,” the white waves called out to one of the turtle mothers. The mother turtle then quickly sat on top of the white waves, with her arms stretched. Upon reaching the golden sands of the Bay, the job of the waves was done.
The poor mother turtle walked on the beach on her stomach. Some boys were playing with green and hard coconuts on the beach. They spotted the mother turtle. “Look, there is another mother turtle! Why are they all so sad today?” They asked each other, but had no answer. They rushed back, stumbling on the sand and green grass, before they reached Mother Saint Martin’s home. “Mother Saint Martin, Mother Saint Martin! Oh something terrible has happened,” they cried out.
Mother Saint Martin put on a coloured piece of cloak on her golden face and another black, long coat over her body, only her blue eyes were seen. “Get my umbrella please,” she asked one of the boys as she started walking real fast to the beach.
Back in the sea, the horrible fishermen were shouting from their boats, all 10 of them trying to pull up the net which was very heavy. “Must be a big fish, huh?” they asked each other. But it was not a fish. It was a young little turtle, named Farah, who was trying to swim away from home in the sea, to go to a place where she was told young girls could play freely.
Meanwhile, Mother Saint Martin was on the beach, putting her long black coat over the turtle eggs that mother turtles had lined up inside the sand. And when some bad men came to pick up the eggs, Mother Saint Martin poked them with her black umbrella. “Get away, get away!” she shouted at him.
One bad man shouted back: “Oh, I will put them turtles on top of the fire and have them in the market.”
Mother Saint Martin felt sad, but then she thought she could at least save the ones who got their legs stuck in the squares of the net. So, she then ran to the waves and asked them to take her with them to the sea turtles’ home, way under the sea. Meanwhile, back in the sea, mother turtles and Mother Saint Martin all held hands and cut the bad fishermen’s net with their teeth. “Thank you, thank you!” cried the sea fish that swam away from the net when they saw a door open. “Oh, don’t you worry. I will come every time to save you,” said Mother Saint Martin. 

Mother Saint Martin and the Sea Turtles

Syed Raiyan Abu Zafar The baby turtles were ready to be hatched, while more eggs were being lined up by the mother turtles. All the while the sea was busy playing, making high waves going up and down, so high as to sometimes pull down the fishermen with their horrible fishing nets. One or two fishermen fell into the sea and pushed it back with their hands. Get away from me! the fishermen said. Then something really horrible happened. Some young sea turtles got their tiny feet stuck in the square holes of the net. Oh help! Someone help, cried the mother turtle. No one but the white salty waves heard the poor turtle. Now, we must rush to the Bay and let Mother Saint Martin know. Come along, ride on us, the white waves called out to one of the turtle mothers. The mother turtle then quickly sat on top of the white waves, with her arms stretched. Upon reaching the golden sands of the Bay, the job of the waves was done. The poor mother turtle walked on the beach on her stomach. Some boys were playing with green and hard coconuts on the beach. They spotted the mother turtle. Look, there is another mother turtle! Why are they all so sad today? They asked each other, but had no answer. They rushed back, stumbling on the sand and green grass, before they reached Mother Saint Martins home. Mother Saint Martin, Mother Saint Martin! Oh something terrible has happened, they cried out. Mother Saint Martin put on a coloured piece of cloak on her golden face and another black, long coat over her body, only her blue eyes were seen. Get my umbrella please, she asked one of the boys as she started walking real fast to the beach. Back in the sea, the horrible fishermen were shouting from their boats, all 10 of them trying to pull up the net which was very heavy. Must be a big fish, huh? they asked each other. But it was not a fish. It was a young little turtle, named Farah, who was trying to swim away from home in the sea, to go to a place where she was told young girls could play freely. Meanwhile, Mother Saint Martin was on the beach, putting her long black coat over the turtle eggs that mother turtles had lined up inside the sand. And when some bad men came to pick up the eggs, Mother Saint Martin poked them with her black umbrella. Get away, get away! she shouted at him. One bad man shouted back: Oh, I will put them turtles on top of the fire and have them in the market. Mother Saint Martin felt sad, but then she thought she could at least save the ones who got their legs stuck in the squares of the net. So, she then ran to the waves and asked them to take her with them to the sea turtles home, way under the sea. Meanwhile, back in the sea, mother turtles and Mother Saint Martin all held hands and cut the bad fishermens net with their teeth. Thank you, thank you! cried the sea fish that swam away from the net when they saw a door open. Oh, dont you worry. I will come every time to save you, said Mother Saint Martin.