6:30AM: All twelve of us groggily woke up at the crack of dawn (this is getting harder everyday) and consumed copious amounts of various breakfast cereals. We sent Donald out to capture photos of yet another beautiful sunrise, and somehow managed to get ourselves into the vans by 7:30AM.
8:00AM: We arrived at the hospital to the aroma of yummy lemon drops and donut holes. After we stuffed our cheeks, we separated into groups. Nick, Elizabeth, and Zabrina traveled to sick bay to spend time with Dune Bug, Canal, Zazu, Weasely, and Dobby. There they helped feed the turtles (no fingers were harmed in the feeding of these turtles) and clean turtles and tanks . The rest of the gang went to turtle bay to be put to work. After completion of their everyday duties, the turtle bay crew got to wash off turtles and watch volunteers perform treatments on the turtles. Once the sick bay and turtle bay crews got back together, we got to watch our BFF Sarah tag three of our turtles that are set to be released tomorrow (WOOHOO!!). We also had the chance to see Jean's magic in action, and watched in awe as she managed to calm even the craziest Kemps Ridley while giving intense antibiotic injections.
12:30PM: After we finished our various turtle tasks, we sat down for our Daily Dose of Jean wisdom. As we gathered in the classroom, Jean began telling about the importance of trust in her relationship with the sea turtles and other people alike. She told us the story of Warrior, a turtle that had been gravely when attacked by other turtles while stuck in a fishing net. Many people did not expect Warrior to survive, but after a long time Jean managed to gain the turtles trust by spending hours talking to the turtle and reminding it that it was indeed a warrior. After some time, Jean managed to calm the turtle down and allow for the proper treatment to be completed. The trusting relationship Jean built with this turtle was evident through her poignant and touching narrative. She later went on to find that Warrior had been found in Florida by another rescue group and seemed to be loving life (he was a bit chubby). Typically when turtles are released into the wild, no one ever hears from them again, but in this case it was incredible to see that one of their most intense cases had triumphed in this battle. There is no way to explain how time seems stop when Jean begins to speak, but it is a remarkable experience.
2:30PM: After some bumpin' car rides, we made our way to the North Carolina Aquarium at Ft. Fisher. There, we saw baby loggerheads, witnessed albino crocodiles, and got to interact with different exhibits like the pools where we got to touch sting rays, anemone, and even real live sharks! We also got involved with some hurricane simulators and super artsy photo shoots. Outside at the aquarium, Donald and Elizabeth searched for shark teeth and fossils and eventually joined the rest of the gang as they spent time doing an activity we like to call "Terps watching Turtles" (something we've been doing a lot of this trip). The car ride back consisted of one van taking afternoon naps and Jess attempting to crush Elizabeth's shoulder.
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| Incoming! Eleven excited ILSers and our fearless leader Zabrina took on the aquarium! |
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| A majestic loggerhead in it's (not-so) natural habitat. |
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| A beautiful Donald-taken picture of Brian touching a stingray. Don't try this at home kids. |
8:00PM: Our reflection tonight talked a lot about service, and what it means to each of us. Our constructive conversation led to some thorough debates regarding the different motivations behind service and whether or not they should affect our views on what is considered "true service". We ended the evening preparing and practicing our presentations for 300 school children we will be teaching Thursday (please send help).
For your enjoyment, here are a few quotes from our week so far:
"American's will never change something as intimate as the shape of their milk!" -Brian
"A quarter of a single cucumber will RAVAGE our water system." -Pam
"....A child." -Nicku
"I thought I was nesting with you!" - Nicole
"Cheez-Its can be overwhelming" -Nick
"I want my Pirates Booty!" -Juhye
And some pictures from our day!
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| Terps watching Turtles chilling on the log. |
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| Splashing around in the pools. |
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| Roommates that ride frogs together are 50% happier on average. |
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| Fun times in the beautiful weather (Jess what are you doing?). |
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| Spotted: 8 month old Loggerhead turtle at the aquarium. |
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