|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2011 6:05 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2011 6:25 pm
Fergus looked over his flattened hut, the anger grew in him, it flared like a spark. With every failed attempt like a strike to the flint, strike, strike, strike, it has finally produced a flame. The overwhelming feeling of defeat was constant, and frustrating. How much more time and effort could he afford to put in to this? How many times can he put his heart into something with it producing no fruit?
He curled his lip in disgust, and in his furry kicked and stomped what was left of his once again broken home.
"I can't keep doing this!" he exclaimed, "What am I doing wrong? Why does this keep happening?!" The frustration growled in his voice.
He thought he had learned from his mistakes, the first one melted in the rain, the second he had managed to make mostly waterproof but was apparently to close to the river because it rained like at tsunami the next night and sank in the river, this one was on stilts and water proof. Fergus was certain this time he had hit all the bases, but a berserk wind storm ripped the roof off and it toppled over. The last one took him weeks to build, to gather the materials, to plan how to build the structure, then actually get the thing made.
For two months Fergus has been building homes, for two months of wind and rain he has slept without a decent shelter. He has lost sleep and quite a bit of weight, with burning more energy than hes taking in. Exhaustion was eminent he hadn't eaten more that a bit of rice and some berries in the past two days. Fergus collapsed near the pile of debris that was once his four week project. He didn't move or attempt to get up, just lay here under the high noon sun.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2011 6:59 pm
He lay in the heat of the day for nearly an hour. His nose had begun to turn color and burn. Lemon's voice rang in his head, Get to work you lazy bum!
"Why should I if its only going to fall apart again?" he asked the voice.
Ask your neighbors how they do it it replied
"Thats a good idea, thanks Lemon." Fergus said aloud. The heat and exhaustion was clearly beginning to affect his head. Lemon had left to visit a relative more than a week ago, gut her voice and lessons and grumpy attitude was still clear in is head.
He pushed himself off the ground and began to look around for a new idea. He needed something fresh, something he hadn't thought of before to start his home again.
"Ask my neighbors" he said to himself with a ponder.
Fergus had no neighbors that he knew of. It had always just been him and Lemon, and she wasn't always the best company, especially when she slipped into one of her "goat tantrums". Fergus shook his head to try and clear it of distracting thoughts.
Taking in a deep breath he tried to look at his surroundings in a new way, through new eyes. Song birds flew overhead, a flock of them perching in a nearby tree.
"The birds make their homes out of the same materials as I do, but they have the shelter and high ground of the branches to help them." He thought aloud, "But I can't fly, and I'm not so good at climbing trees". Fergus thought for a minute, trying to figure out a way to get himself in a tree, none of his options seemed all to safe to attempt.
Ducks called to the right of him. They live on the water, how do they keep their eggs from slipping into the lake? He observed that they nest in the tall reeds, their homes rise and fall with the water level.
A splash caught his attention. He spun see what had made such a noise, It was a beaver, it had dropped a small tree in the water and was pulling it towards his dam in the corner of the lake.
Should he live on the river? Building a structure to float wouldn't be so difficult, keeping it in one place would be. If he could find a way to tie it... His mind plotted and thought. His thoughts were interrupted with the sound of his belly, it roared with hunger. His first step was going to have to be, getting something to eat.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2011 8:08 pm
Fergus had eaten most the blueberries he had collected, but managed to collect some dewberry leafs for tea, a handful of red mulberries, and sea grapes. He hauled his meal back to his "spot" and made a campfire. He boiled the water in a ceramic bowl Lemon had given him, and made dewberry tea. The plants, berries and tea were tasty but couldn't provide him with all the energy he needed.
The tea had revitalized him enough to hunt raw fish. When he first started to gather them, he would dig them out and grab their tails, but all to often the pinches found his nose. A Soquili's mussel is very sensitive and the craw fish put up quite the fight. So rather than gathering them with his mouth, he found that fishing with his tail works nicely. He would dip his tail in the water and dangle the hairs near them, whey would of course pinch it, but because the craw fish only pinch the end hairs, Fergus can pull them out the water and toss them into the boiling water without hurting himself. He was quite proud of this little technique and liked to show it off to Lemon.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2011 9:27 pm
The wind picked up, Fergus made a temporary shelter under a dead tree. It had busted at the roots and was hanging over to the side. He used swamp cabbage palm leafs to create a sort of tent, he draped them over the trunk in many layers to keep the wind out. He tied them together like big fans and anchored them with rocks. The palms also made a decent bed when layered enough.
The sun had begun to set and the sky grew dark. Fergus retired on his mat of palms and tried to rest, he would have time to work on the house tomorrow, get more ideas and scout for new locations.
Heavy clouds poured through the sky, waves of wind and rain followed like a wake. Fergus pulled the palm leafs over him, tying to shelter himself from the cold wicked rain. It rained heavily and the wind was relentless, pulling, tugging, brawling on Fergus. For an hour he endured, and it passed, as quickly as it came. He was relieved and thankful the tree didnt fall on him, but the storm left his body tense and cold. His back felt like it had been beaten by the heavy stinging rain. The fire was out, and under three inches of water, the surrounding area turned to a cold muddy playground. With the comfort of the fire gone, Fergus did his best to sleep standing close to the trunk of a tree.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2011 9:48 pm
The loneliness he had suppressed became apparent, it was as if the rain had washed away his hope. He felt miserable and alone, he sank his head and pulled his ears back timidly. He was exhausted from enduring the storm, but the coldness of the rain left him feeling exposed and shivering.
Why was this place so unforgiving? It always had intense weather, but he used to see past it, see the beauty in the nature he submersed himself in.
Now all he could see is grey, wet slippery grey, cold wet grey. How could he feel at home here when he had no place to call his home? That's what drove him to keep building, but now he saw little reason in even staying.
As Fergus was about to give up, a glint of gold caught his eye. The flickering light buzzed by. A fire fly, it flashed its light like code, as if it were sending out a signal. He became fixated on the fire fly, more appeared, a few at first, but then dozens, hundreds poured from the grass and trees, collecting around him like glitter.
He began to get that feeling again, their beauty reminded him why he loved this place. Why he wanted the marsh to be his home, it was time he sucked it up and dealt with the situation like an adult. The unforgiving weather wont keep him from living where he wants, from living where he loves to be.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
