What if...

Luke brought this book home from the school library today: A Mama for Owen, by Marion Dane Bauer. Seemed innocent enough. Until the drowning little hippo roars for his mama, until he can roar no more, as his family is separated by the flooding river. *sniff, sniff* That's when this mama could barely hold back the tears and was beginning to wonder why on earth someone would write such sadness for children. And trust me, after the beautiful and tender description of Owen's love for his mother hippo, losing her was sad. But Owen washes ashore and finds a 130 year old male tortoise, Mzee, who becomes his new "mama." A bittersweet story. But you know what they say, the truth is often stranger than fiction.
Imagine our surprise when we finished the story and read on the last page of the book that the precious story of Owen and Mzee is true. (Apparently, the story failed to capture my attention when it happened in 2004, but then again, I had a 1yr old and a 2 yr old at the time so not much in world news did catch my attention). Owen was rescued after the 2004 Indian earthquake and taken to a nature preserve where he met Mzee. Owen was still a nursing calf at the time, and normally would have spent 3 more years under his mother's care. Mzee showed Owen what to eat, where to sleep, and for a couple years, (until it was time to introduce Owen to a hipp-ette) they were inseparable. Owen and Mzee have their own website, BBC documentary and several books. Their relationship has even spawned more than one children's song.