One day I found a gecko in my kitchen sink. I have no idea how he got there. Ideally, I would be able to scream and my husband would come running to my rescue. But as it was, he was at work and I was on my own. Keeping my cool, so as not to freak out my young kids, I proceeded to chase the poor thing from one side of the sink, over the divider, to the other side of the sink until he tired out. Finally, he allowed me to scoop him into a bowl and I slammed a lid on tight.

We were excited to get him outside into the grass and let him go. Be free little gecko!

I pushed my young daughter on the swings while we watched our new friend, wondering how he would spend his first moments in freedom. When–you might have guessed–a sharp-eyed bird also spotted our free little friend.

Lesson learned. When freeing a gecko, let him go in the rocks. A good lesson in camouflage.