The Daraja Times: An Encounter With a Snake

One day as I was walking home from the market, I felt something soft on my foot. When I looked down, I was perplexed, mesmerized and stood aghast, transfixed to the ground not daring to move a single muscle. It was a very big black snake.

An idea rang into my mind and I quickly took a stick that was lying on the ground and tried to hit the snake. Little did I know that I had jumped from the frying pan directly into the fire.

The snake lifted its head and tried to spit saliva on me. I missed it and turned back. I ran as fast as my feeble legs could carry me. When I reached home, I realised that I had left the things I was sent to buy.

My mother asked me why I was back without the things she had sent me to buy. I started trembling like a chameleon on a feeble twig.

Without uttering a word, I quickly ran back to the place only to find that the snake was still there. It rolled around the basket that I had carried.

I quickly thought of an idea and gave out a blood-curdling scream. Luckily some men were passing by, they came and immediately started stoning the snake. They fought tooth and nail with the snake until it faced its doom. I thanked the men and took my basket home while whistling merrily on the way.

When I reached home, I found my mother waiting for me on the door while carrying several sticks. She looked at me chillingly. Her eyes were turning red. I had no choice but to run away.

I quickly put the basket down and disappeared as quickly as I had appeared. I did not know where I was going to and turned towards the forest. I entered the forest and found somewhere cool and sat there.

I was thinking of what to do next and suddenly saw a mango tree with some juicy mangoes. I could not really control my desire to have the mangoes. I climbed the tree to pluck some.

I again was surprised to see another snake that had coiled itself on one of the branches. It lifted its head as if signaling danger. I started trembling again. Then I broke one branch from the tree to hit the snake. Before I could do so, I remembered what my grandmother had told me. She had told me never to hit a snake whenever it was nesting somewhere or else it would bite.

I threw the branch down and climbed down slowly. From a distance I heard my mother’s sweet golden voice calling me. I knew she had forgiven me. I quickly ran to meet her.

From that day, I swore never to run when I had wronged someone. Truly, experience is the best teacher!

Image courtesy of https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Cool_Snake_Drawing.jpg