Biology Ponds

The beauty seems to be lost in this man-made pond: these flat, round statues posed without movement. The species that I recognize, the Texas Red-Eared Slider, sits upon the rocks sticking one or two webbed feet out into the air - so perfectly, so easily, without becoming weary. I believe there are two, maybe even three species, one of which I know because I was exposed to them so many times throughout my life. The other I am unsure of. Maybe they are the female species of the Texas Red-Eared Slider; maybe they are a completely different species. It is a question I will surely ask my dad, just so I will know and be able to say that I know (I guess). The wind is now blowing quite strongly, yet the turtle seem unaffected. They sit quietly and still waiting for the glorious sun to warm their bodies. What a simple life they lead.

I look around at my fellow classmates. We are all thinking about the ponds. But everyone thinks differently, even about the same thing. A big fish (a koi) appears below the surface. Some of us are impressed, some are not. Personally, I do not like big fish. I like them to be small. But only God can decide the size of fish. But Darwin thinks otherwise. He thinks that species are the way they are because they have survived that way. They are how they are in order to procreate and keep the species moving. He says. "It has been said that I speak of natural selection as an active power or Deity; but who objects to an author speaking of the attraction of gravity as ruling the movements of the planets"(340)? He wants to know why people accept physics in place of God, but not natural selection. Well I accept neither in place of God. God made the world the way He wanted it and allows it to continue the way it does because that is His master plan.

The beauty of a man-made pond can never equal the beauty of a God-made pond. The cement, the gravel, and the few plants that were place where they now grow all make the pond seem cold and uncaring. Do the little turtles know that their home is not real? Do they know that their past generations were purposefully put there and not born in the pond? The sun is coming out from behind the clouds. I can feel the heat on my back. The sunlight brings more turtles out onto the rocks. Being cold-blooded, they thrive on the heat they absorb into their bodies. The sun us a beautiful thing and sustains life on this earth. I think it is important for all species to "soak up the sun". Sue Hubbel writes. "That is why I have stopped sleeping inside. A house is too small, too confining"(Slovic 135). We should all go outside, soak up the sun, and enjoy the world God has made for us.