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the koala, I must admit that, having read the article by Rebecca Laffar-Smith, I was quite astounded at how much the turtle's personality matched my own when it comes to my reactions to stress and pain - of which I have experienced a great deal in the past decade. I guess it's not surprising that it's another sedentary animal - maybe not quite as appealing as the koala - but still I'm glad it's an animal most of us like well enough. What's more, he ends up being the hero in the fable about the tortoise and the hare. There's no doubt the tortoise does have its own commendable qualities. I'm just heartily thankful that the animal which fitted my personality in the book discussed in the article was a tortoise and not a sloth!

Like the turtle, I acknowledge I do indeed retreat into the comfort zone of my shell a lot. I am indeed the type to procrastinate in dealing with the issues that overwhelm me and just muddle along from day to day in spite of uncomfortable conditions and circumstances, rather than tackle challenges that loom like giants before me. Yes, I am the kind that needs to somehow learn to face those challenges a chunk - or "bite size" - at a time. Furthermore, I do need that supportive, empathetic cheerleader who will encourage without being critical or pushy or feeling compelled to try and come up with pat answers to my complex problems.

These reflections have certainly given me good food for thought. While it's been fun to compare myself to the koala, I will contemplate further what my response ought to be to the comparison I have discovered between my personality and that of the tortoise.

As I remember, the moral of the fable about the tortoise and the hare was that "slow and steady wins the race". I certainly never won any races at school and these days the slow plod of a draft horse may be as good as I could hope to achieve . At least the draft horse is a somewhat more noble-looking creature than the humble tortoise. But who knows what even a tortoise can achieve if they just keep putting one plodding foot in front of the other, moving inch by inch - or even centimetre by centimetre towards a worthy goal?

Learn more about this author, Ruth Woodhouse.
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