The Girl and the Beast

The Girl and the Beast

       I came home from the Quranic School that fine summer afternoon. I was heading a worn path between the huge palm trees of my country. The wind was shaking the leaves of the trees violently trying to say something I could not understand.

Holding my slate as I was walking, the sight of a girl entangled in her white long head cover, and strangled by the rope that supports to her back the container she was using to collect grass from the field took me by surprise.

Moreover, the rope passes from one side of the container to the other over the girl’s chest which complicated the situation. The girl also had what looked to me like a wild animal sticking to her arm and moving its tail sideways. It acted like a lamb sucking a sheep’s udder. How it got to the girl and how it attacked her is still unsolved mystery to me. The beast was thirsty for blood.

I just stood still knowing not what to do. The poor girl called my name and said: “would you please come and get that rope off of me”.

I could not really move one tiny little inch forward. I was the most scared city boy who spent a summer holiday in the country on Earth seeing the bloody inhumane image at a young age. It made me go cold in the feet, and frozen to death. It scared the life out of me!

I took one, two, three and four steps backward until I disappeared from both the beast and the girl’s sight angle. I was shattered and frightened to go next under the merciless beast’s fangs if it smelled me. I turned around and took to my heels as fast as I could. I jumped off the bank of the dry rocky river, crossed the valley and made it to the other bank.

There I found my grandma and aunty sitting on a rock talking after they finished working in the field. They could see the terror in my face and hear the fear in my voice. I was fainting as I was telling them what I saw. I insisted that the poor girl needs help immediately or else there will be a funeral this evening. I also told them that she was nearby in a place called “TIGHZRIN”.

They did not wait to hear the rest as I continued saying that there was hope she could be saved. They hurried to the location of the bloody and dramatic accident. The beast was still busy sucking blood from the girl’s arm.

My grandma took the wild animal firmly by the neck and put her knees on its hind legs to control its movements. Then my aunt handed her a thick stick that she tweaked from the trunk of a palm tree. Right after that my grandma proceeded by giving the beast some “anesthesia”. She gave the bloody animal good blows on the head. In the mean while, my aunt went to call for help from a group of country men who usually sit at that time of the day by the mosque waiting for the prayers to start.

She led the group of men to the place. They could not believe their eyes as they got there and saw the scene.

Bobker quickly took a heavy rock “let me smash its head with this boulder” he burst.

“What! Don’t you see that you gonna smash my head too if you take that action” grandma retorted in a firm tone.

“Well, then step away from the animal, now!” said one of the men.

As my grandma let go of the beast, it made a move on her, right to her throat. It jumped high, but my grandma already moved away a good distance.

The minute gravity pulled the damn beast to mother earth, a heavy rock came down on its head, then another one and a third…. One moment it was breathing and the next it was not.

The poor girl was taken in a private vehicle to the closest hospital that could provide assistance with situations that involve massive hemorrhage. The clinical facility was, as it is today, 24 kilometers from the spot of the dramatic event.

All is well that ends well. Sometime later, I received the news that the girl was saved. Now, she is married and has a nice family.