Monday, April 13, 2009

The One that Got Away

A couple of days ago, I was chilling, (or in this case boiling) in our kitchen when my dad called me to come outside in a voice that he uses when something is very important. So I went outside with my animal box, a clear plastic storage tub with holes drilled in the white lid. Once outside, my dad pointed to a hole in the cinder block wall that perimeters the mission. Inside the hole was a lizard, a rather large iguana. I thought it was a slow moving gentle skink-like lizard, not a fast moving whip-tailed iguana! So I said, "I think this kind is really slow, Daddy." Boy was I wrong! We took the lid off the box. My intention was to catch the thing. We put the box over the hole and Daddy held it there while I went over to the other side of the wall and pounded on it. The lizard didn't like that and instead of going out of the hole and into the box, it simply went deeper into the hole. Only the tip of its tail was showing.
Daddy was ready to call it a night for it was after supper. But I didn't want to lose this iguana so I said,"Wait, let's pour water down the hole." So I got a cup of water and Daddy did the pouring while he held the box near the hole. The first cup didn't work, but the second was only half gone when... out shot the lizard so fast you could hardly see it, right into the box! Except that Daddy was holding the box out from the wall so he could pour the water in. He tried to push it up against the wall, but the lizard had started to run out. Daddy was afraid he would either squish it or it would run up his arm, so he dropped the box! Up the wall the iguana ran. The lizard paused one third of the way up. I picked the box off the ground and lunged toward it. Too late! For the lizard ran up and over the wall. I ran around to the other side just in time to see it sprinting on its hind legs into a grove of banana trees. Because the iguana had to much of a head start, I did not follow it into the darkness. And that was the one that got away.

4 comments:

  1. Great story Jonathan!! I also liked reading the other post about the gecko!
    I'm sure you'll catch one sooner or later.
    I miss you and the others and hope to come visit.
    love Carolee
    xo

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  2. I can just see how that whole scene played out! I think I would have been jumping back when it went into then out of the box! Actually, I would have just been watching this whole scene from the porch, because I don't think I would have been anywhere near where it might "run up my arm." This was really interesting. I am enjoying reading your blog.

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  3. Another creature encounter for Jonathan! I'm guessing you'll remember "the one that got away" more vividly than if you had actually caught him. If you had caught him you wouldn't have seen just how fast he could run. I'm mostly glad he didn't end up squished - yuck.

    I'm looking forward to seeing you when you get back and hearing more of these adventures ~ I'm sure there are more.

    Mrs. Truman

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  4. Jonathan,

    Thank you for sharing this story! I love reading your blog. It's one of the best blogs I have ever read. :) Sorry the lizard got away. I hope you get him next time!

    -jayna

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