There once was a young turtle who lived by a pond.
He was convinced he was alone,
 for he hadn't seen another turtle since one disappeared behind a frond.
As he poked his head out from the shell,
 he found that all of his brothers and sisters were gone.
This poor little turtle had not a clue what befell
his family of fellow turtles from the same hollow nest.
His little flippers flapped and he fell from the shell,
 landing on the ground and walking off with a zest.
The little turtle wandered far and wide;
or at least it was for a turtle his size,
searching for his family, setting his hunger aside.
As this little turtle trundled along,
he came across a heron, whom he asked
"Kind heron, have you seen any turtles to whom I could belong?"
"No, little turtle, I haven't," said the kind heron.
And so the little turtle continued on his sought out path.
He was thinking to himself, "My, this land is barren."
Awhile along, this little tired turtle stopped for a bath.
As he waded into the water, he started with a shock,
the water was freezing! especially for a turtle his size.
So he started to swim, quickly and swiftly towards the dock.
Once safe from the waters cold clutches, he closed his tiny turtle eyes.
"Just a short nap," he said, and he pulled in his small head.
Quite some time later, a soft voice sounded near;
and the little turtle came out from his nice warm bed.
The voice that seemed close sounded with cheer,
as a chorus of voices shouted out,
"We found him, Mother, safe and sound right here!"
All of these turtles suddenly gathered about.
These turtles were his family!
They had found eachother at last,
and the little turtle smiled happily.
He was glad they had found eachother so fast.
As all the turtles swam off as a group,
the little turtle called out to all who could hear,
"I have finally found my troop!"
And he vowed that he would never again let his family disappear.