Here’s a snapshot of life here in Bundibugyo. Yesterday, I was playing football (soccer) with about 20 neighborhood kids in front of my house, as has become my custom most afternoons, especially now that school is out. One of my favorite boys, Richard, was dribbling the ball near the bushes when suddenly he jumped back and a snake slithered away from right under his feet toward the bushes. Within moments, all 20 of the kids were shouting and surrounding the bushes, launching rocks into them to try to scare the snake out. The snake was soon chased up to the top of the bush, about 15 feet, and the kids kept throwing rocks up into the air, which clattered onto my roof on the other side (and I was amazed that none of the kids hit each other, since they were surrounding the bush). Soon, adults were running toward my house, sticks in hand, ready to take over in place of the kids. After throwing a few sticks into the bush, the snake was knocked down and quickly beaten to death by my friend Richard. It was then pulled out into the path, where about 10 kids beat its lifeless body with sticks for several minutes, as if to make sure that it was actually dead. And that was the third snake that was killed within a few feet of my house yesterday.
Now, many of you probably know that I am an animal lover who hates to kill things (exception: rats), and that I really like snakes and have always tried to convince people that they’re not dangerous and should be left alone. Here, however, things are a little different, since almost all snakes are poisonous, and there are kids running around my yard all the time. Luckily, this very common species is only “mildly poisonous,” causing swelling and nausea but never death. When I said to someone “I’m not sure if this kind is dangerous,” my neighbor replied, “We don’t have non-dangerous snakes here.” So, I’ve had to decide that snakes in my yard must be killed, especially since these three appeared to be living in a hole in the concrete of my house, where I saw another one today. So there will probably be another snake-killing posse in action soon.
1 comment:
Nathan - sorry to hear about your continuation of snake-o-pades at the house. I secretly had hoped that the snakes I helped kill around the home last year would be a warning to all other snakes to stay far away. Richard (if the same Richard, aka Babwesi American) also helped me kill a snake a year ago. I hope this is your best Christmas ever and full of laughing, joy, and celebration - and NO snakes!!!
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