This blog was started to share my experiences with my friends back home. But writing has also been a journey of self-discovery. I’ve learned more in the past several weeks than in my previous 30 years of living. I began posting after moving to to make a fresh start. Last time I checked, I had less than 500 followers but the numbers don’t matter. I’m doing this for me.

If you’re reading Susie’s Blog for the first time, I’m a Minnesota fish snatched out of her comfort zone of glacier chilled lakes, refreshing summer breezes and snowy winters and dropped into the warm bath of SW Florida. I didn’t just relocate to a southern state, but to a foreign country!

I live in Ulee’s Refuge, a complex with multiple buildings and more than 300 units. We’re a tight community with an interesting mix of residents, from retirees to couples starting out, with babies, teens, twenty-somethings, middle-aged folks and white hair seniors who kick my butt at tai chi.

Today I’m reflecting on how nature mirrors the human condition. Secrets, for example: You don’t suspect those kept by a casual acquaintance or ones a friend is hiding. A secret is like a turtle, an alligator or submarine–over 95% lurks under the surface.

We’ve got turtles galore at Ulee’s Refuge. Stroll around the lake and beady eyes follow your progress, each turtle’s neck stretched to its limits. If you venture closer, every head vanishes–but if you keep going, those periscopes pop up again and unwinking eyes continue to track your passage.

Turtle behavior seems creepy but they’re harmless: one won’t dart out of the water and take a nip at your leg.  

But German U-Boats, Alligators and Secrets share a common trait–each has proven deadly to humans.