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The moral: You can change the world – maybe not all at once, but one person, one animal, and one good deed at a time. Wake up every morning and pretend like what you do makes a difference. It does

She then looked down at the turtle in her lap, scrubbed off the last piece of algae from its shell, and said, “Sweetie, if this little guy could talk, he’d tell you I just made all the difference in the world.”

She smiled. “I’m cleaning off their shells,” she replied. “Anything on a turtle’s shell, like algae or scum, reduces the turtle’s ability to absorb heat and impedes its ability to swim

“Hello,” I said. “I see you here every Sunday morning. If you don’t mind my nosiness, I’d love to know what you’re doing with these turtles.”

So, no offense… but how exactly are your localized efforts here truly making a difference?”

She had a fourth turtle in her lap that she was carefully scrubbing with a spongy brush.

And 99% of these turtles don’t have kind people like you to help them clean off their shells.

There were three turtles, unharmed, slowly walking around the base of the trap.

I scratched my head. “Well then, don’t you think your time could be better spent? I mean, I think your efforts are kind and all, but there are fresh water turtles living in lakes all around the world.

This past Sunday my curiosity got the best of me, so I stopped jogging and walked over to her.

Each time I jog by this lake, I see the same elderly woman sitting at the water’s edge with a small metal cage sitting beside her.

“But don’t most freshwater turtles live their whole lives with algae and scum hanging from their shells?” I asked.

She went on: “I spend a couple of hours each Sunday morning, relaxing by this lake and helping these little guys out.