The Congo

On one side, the mug read “you’re the best!", and on the opposite, was my 5th grade school picture (bowl-cut and all). I scoop out some ice cream with a metal spoon and pull it towards my lips, avidly awaiting this first creamy glob of Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey ice cream. The spoon slowly slides into my gaping mouth, sending an exhilarating chill down my spine. Something has happened... I am no longer here.

I glance to my left and spot Harold, the Silverback alpha male of our clan grooming father in the distance beside a great tree. Clinging onto mother’s furry back, I inhale a breath of fresh jungle air. It is the rainy season, and the air smells good. Mother reaches back peeling me from her shoulders and sets me on the muddy ground.

I regain consciousness for a instant; my tongue is in a state of ecstasy. However, now the mug is almost empty; only one scoop remains. As the last scoop hits my tongue, my mind drifts, and I once again return to the jungle.

In the distance I hear loud shouts. Suddenly Harold dashes into a stream kicking splashes of water into the air. In a swift motion mother grabs me, cradling me in her arms as she too rushes towards the stream. A bullet whizzes past us and ricochets off a tree. I hear the rifle shot's echo. The men are louder now, and I have fallen from mother’s arms. I scamper across the jungle floor in a daze. A net whizzes through the air followed by an excited cheer.

Only a smooth banana aftertaste remains. Chunky Monkey.