In the open prairie, Lion and Bloke (the Only man) were wrestling with
each other along with the animals that slowly arrived to watch. They were
having a gay ol’ time when the rain came pouring down. Not a second when by
before the droplets of water were coming down like bullets instead of fairy
dust.
Both Lion and Man knowing exactly where they needed to go, ran their
separate ways without daring to tell the other their ingenious plan. Lion first
ran to discuss his plan with his Mother to get one last ounce of confidence.
She immediately asked him where he had been playing all day. To which
he responded he had been wrestling the Bloke, the Man. Startled by his
response, she gave him some insight about the creature of the man.
She said, “Be on watch when around the Man for he has evil intent
swimming amongst his thoughts. He acts, walks and thinks differently than you
and I, so keep your guard up and never visit him again.”
With his eyes rolling and his head held high, the lion refused to
listen to his mother’s advice for he knew he was far wiser than his senile
mother.
Not long after this conversation, the lion ran to the rain-field to
hide behind a bush, in the hopes of beating Bloke to the secret spot.
Whilst this occurred, the mother of lion quickly met with Bloke to
finalize their plan. Bloke was going to give lion a scare to make him listen to
his mother for her gut told her that her son would not obey her command, which
is why this trickery was a necessity. Finishing their conversation with a
short, but meaningful handshake. The two grasped the other’s hand or paw and
said a short prayer.
Lion had already made it to his bush where he anxiously awaited the
arrival of Bloke and his white dogs. A whistling sound was coming from the
distance, but it was so faint, lion couldn’t make out what it was. Before he
could think much longer, Bloke was just feet away from the bush. Lion pounced
for the Man’s head, but was struck by the white dogs in mid air. Immediately,
the Man let off a shot with his pistol, hitting lion in the right shoulder.
Leaving the animal to fend for himself, the Man informed the lion’s mother to
go look for him by the secret bush. She met him with a helping hand and carried
him back to their den.
While on
man is a rarity, not all men share the same love for the lion. Be careful who
you trust and hold on to your mother’s teachings.
Author’s
Note: Lion Who Thought Himself Wiser than His Mother was a story from the South African Unit in the Mythology
and Folklore UN-Textbook. The story is very similar to the one I just wrote,
but it does not include a friendship with the mother lion and the Man, Bloke. I
wanted to give the story more of a background so you see the relationships the
characters have with each other even if all the characters in the story don’t
know about it. The voice of the two stories is similar, but the lessons are slightly
different.
Bibliography: Lion Who Thought Himself Wiser than His Mother. South African Unit. South African
Folk-Tales. Mythology and Folklore UN-Textbook. James Honey (1010).
This story was very interesting. I really enjoyed your take on it. Telling it from the perspective of the young lion was original and clever. I did think that the mother went to far in trying to teach her son a lesson. The man shooting him was way over the top and kind of heartbreaking. I think it would have been an interesting take if the young lion had overheard his mother and the man make a deal. Just a thought.
ReplyDeleteI liked your take on the story a lot. I don't know if you've ever seen Arrested Development, but it reminded me of how George Bluth is always teaching his children a lesson through elaborate and extreme means. I think the only suggestion I might make is that when you talk about the man shooting the lion, maybe say something like the shot him in the shoulder like the lion's mother told him to do? I think that would lessen the impact of the mother telling the Man to shoot her son. Other than that I enjoyed it!
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