Snaky encounter

A pail of water on one hand and a tabo on the other, I march back to the main pathway intent on whooshing down the sick whitish ragged leaves of the dying kalamansi tree which continue to bear fruit in spite of its condition.

When my eyes catch sight of a snake.

I must have looked away quickly, too afraid it is true.  I become aware of my gaze returning to it, as I hold my breath.  It is long, about two meters, biggish in its middle part, very light brown on its upper body which my eyes dwell on.

A snake. A snake!

Transient male cat, temporarily taking hostage of some space and food just around the house is looking at it intently.

Lying beside the row of  tall vari-colored leafed plants on the rectangular plant box lining the side of the house, Sawa stays motionless yet very alert.

Then it moves.  Towards the direction of the gate, I realize belatedly.

I take a deep breath.

I let go of all fear, I hear myself mentally say.

Go! Go on your way, I say to the creature gliding on the ground.

Cat still gazes at it.  Interesadong-interesado, to put it mildly.

Sawa slithers toward my door, then reverses its direction.  Several times it looks up, rears up its head, standing with its upper body as if it wants to go for my farther up kitchen window.

No! I mentally protest.

Cat, grows very still, eyes fixed on the unannounced visitor it now has almost within clawing distance, then gets ready to strike!

Sawa rears its head and upper body up slowly, assertively.  Khisss! I could almost hear its warning.

Miao retreats a bit.

I start splashing water on the plants nearest me, not knowing what to do.  Di na ako nakarating sa kalamansi, a thought bubble surfaces.

A snake! How scary-wonderful to see there’s still a “natural” creature around the house, and this grown!

Sawa once again slowly purposefully moves towards the direction of the gate.  Slither, slide, unfurling itself on the soil.

It rears up its head, inquiringly to my door.  No! I say silently, some panicky feeling welling up.

Sawa slides to the one concrete step in front of my closed door.  Then stops, unable to move.

Miaos, two of them now, look on in earnest.

Mindful to keep her safe, I shoo away Meng, the kitty-come-lately who I regularly feed.  Transient barako cat can fend for himself.   I sprinkle some water towards Meng.   She runs away reluctantly.  It is more exciting to be near the spectacle, I know.

Go,  if you want to go for the road, I say again to the slithering one.  Yet I shudder at the prospect of it being hacked to death by “well-meaning” adult male and boy neighbors, as has often happened when its kind gets discovered in our creekside street.

Oh just go.  Be safe.  Stay alive.

It turns to the right and some more.  Sawa, I realize, is now facing me directly.

Oh you want to be in the shade of plants, I communicated telepathically, thinking I understand what it needs.

Uh-oh, I can’t be in your way!

Moving several quick steps away, up a higher level to the front of the lot, I then run inside the house through the other door and quickly peep through the windows, feeling fearful more that I am farther yet not wanting to miss the unfolding scene outside.

I catch sight of Sawa already near the kalamansi tree.  Wow, that’s nice, it wants to climb!  That would look good in a photo, I heard my documentor-trigger happy self rearing its photo-opper head.

But it only passes by the thin tree body.  It goes for the low concrete wall nearby with its sturdy spine straight up, moving towards the left, and on to the cliff of a concrete wall overlooking the small stream below.

Oh you are so bright!  (Of course you are!) Homing to your own turf!

Transient cat, I notice, still looks on.  Me, too, at the wonder of a has made me feel honored visit of one lovely, all along living out there, growing, courageous, no nonsense snake.