my best friend, the sea turtle

So this sea turtle drawing is something I have been working on for a while. But now he is done!

In December my husband and I went on our honeymoon to Hawaii. I had never been snorkeling before…and it IS AWESOME! At the risk of sounded like the slight hippy-dippy that I am, it is like a whole different world down there…dude. I absolutely loved it, but the coolest thing I saw while snorkeling was this Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle. We were snorkeling in some shallow water right off the Poipu beach, I swam around and there he was. He was gigantic, and looked to be about as old as the sea. It was just me and him for a long time (before I swam off to find my husband to introduce him). He looked right at me while he bobbed with the waves and chewed on a sea snack. These guys are definitely old, wise spirits. I spent as long as I could with the sea turtle, and asked him if we could be friends (he bobbed yes). I  knew I wanted to paint my new friend, so went back to find him the following day equipped with my underwater camera this time. But he was nowhere to be found. I think we were meant to meet only briefly. So this painting of him is mostly from memory, he is carrying the weight of the world (in this case an ancient tree) on his back. The sea is a truly magical place.