#2815 treasures

Today's Instagram prompt for #decemberreflections2022 was "Treasures." I was thinking about what I wanted to show on this prompt, and I finally decided on these five little turtles sitting on my dresser. Bonus, you get to see Yoda next to an olive wood bowl, plus a photo of me with my Aunt Mia and T there in the background. I keep that photo because I am at my heaviest there, and I want to remind myself not to go there again. Finally, the colorful runner everything is sitting on is from Belize. 

Let me tell you about the turtles.

I developed a fascination for sea turtles many years ago, probably on our first cruise in 2006. During a snorkeling excursion in Barbados, I saw sea turtles for the first time. I wasn't snorkeling, of course; I saw them from the boat. MT was snorkeling and he said it was totally amazing to be in the water with the turtles all around him. Since then, I've been picking up turtle souvenirs here and there, and when I look around my house, I see that I have quite a few turtle things. I even have a sea turtle tattoo! The little figurines on my dresser are not all sea turtles, but I still love them all. Each of them is special. 

• The tiny flat-looking sea turtle in the front left is a charm from Tybee Island, Georgia. My mom got him for me when we visited the island in 2018. 
• The little gold turtle, front right, is a pin my dad gave my mom and my mom gave to me just a few years ago.
• The shiny black turtle, back right, is from Mexico. I got him the day we went on an excursion that included a visit to a cenote. Our group had lunch at a restaurant on-site, and there was a large gift shop there, too. I thought the turtle was very pretty, so now he lives with the other turtles on my dresser in Salt Lake City.
• The turtle in the middle of the back row is the newest addition to the collection. He's from Crete.
• The tall, mosaic turtle on the left there is from Barcelona. I bought him in 2015 from the Sagrada Familia gift shop. 

I haven't done much research about the symbolism and significance of turtles. I just think they are cool, and these little figurines are treasures to me.