BAXTER & MONA

excerpt from The Boy by Kurt

Baxter Box-Turtle is racing across the yard at top speed. He’s getting a little tired. Who wouldn’t be after carrying a heavy shell for such a long time. But he presses on with grit and determination. The only problem, just a small one, is that Baxter can’t remember where he is going. That doesn’t deter him at all. On he goes. He’s no slacker, not Baxter Box-Turtle.

He stops for a moment to catch his breath. He feels the sun beating down on him. Baxter slowly turns himself around and around, making a little depression in the grass. He draws his head back into his shell for a bit of shade. He nods off for a quick little nap. Not a catnap, a turtle snooze. A turtle snooze is generally longer and somewhat deeper than a catnap.

When Baxter wakes up he finds that he’s not sure where he is. And as so often happens after one of his impromptu snoozes, he’s not sure where he was coming from or going to. He’s not put off one bit though. He resolutely heads off again, his sturdy legs finding a rhythm as he sets his pace. He’s confident that all is as it should be as he sets off to be about his turtle business.

1.