Silence is Far From Golden

We recently talked about some of the unwritten “rules” of surviving the jungle. One rule that is particularly important was not discussed in that list; and that is, “Silence is not golden!” As with any rule, there are exceptions, for instance, when natives are slumbering in their caves silence is in fact superb. However, when natives are up and about silence indicates that a plot is underfoot and caretakers must take great caution to swiftly detect and deter whatever is taking place.

In my time observing the natives I have encountered many instances that have led me to the discovery of this rule. Most recently was after a trip to the market. As I was unloading the supplies we had gathered the natives appeared to be in particularly pleasant moods. They seemed to have a desire to be helpful and were by all accounts very compliant and sweet.

The elder native chattered away about the trip to the market and even offered to assist in my task. What I did not notice was that the younger native had wandered off to other parts of the jungle and was silently putting his plan into place. With his sibling to distract me he worked swiftly and silently. When he was done he sought me out and proudly displayed his bright red hands, face and shirt. Apparently he had taken it upon himself to repaint his cave a crimson red.

Thankfully for me, (and our linens,) the good people at Crayola had chosen to make their products washable, allowing this to be an amusing, albeit frustrating, part of my day versus an utter disaster.

To top things off, as they usually do, the natives had been working in shifts that day. As I was cleaning up the cave paintings from the younger native, the elder native took the opportunity to further assist me by feeding the jungle cat. Apparently he felt that the jungle cat was severely underfed, to remedy this he left a sizable pile (approximately half of a sack) for the feline to consume. Further, always the considerate one, he had refilled the watering dish for the mouser and in the process had created a stew of sorts out of the heaped food.

While grateful for the native’s initiative to help with the chores around the jungle, it aided me in learning one of the most important lessons of jungle survival…silence is not golden; it’s simply the eye of the hurricane.