A boa constrictor’s smile

 

We soon learned that Lomalinda’s young people were truly remarkable—they possessed a zest for life and were keen for adventure.

 

And living in rural South America gave them a number of opportunities kids back home in the States seldom had.

 

One of the high school kids, Chris Branks, told the following story about a time he and his siblings lived in the dorm for a few weeks while their parents, Bible translators, worked in an indigenous village:

 

“Hector's boa constrictor had thirty-two babies, and he said anyone that wanted one could have one,” Chris said. “There was a stampede as we all rushed over to pick out our boas.”

 

Now, let me interrupt Chris here to remind you that boa constrictors squeeze people and animals to death. And then swallow them whole. Granted, we’re talking about baby boas here, but still. . . . (If you missed it, click on A boa constrictor story you won't soon forget.)

 

“For the next couple of days,” Chris continued, “the dorm sounded like an industrial zone as we hammered together cages. Not all of them were very secure, and there were some long faces on the kids whose snakes escaped.

 

“There was also a lot of horse-trading going on. Boys traded Swiss Army knives and other treasures to accumulate more snakes.

 

“For weeks, every boy in the dorm wore a snake around his neck or arm or had one squirming in his pocket.”

 

Even at school! Can you imagine?! Read on . . .

 

“Eventually, the school principal banned the boas—

they caused too many distractions

for both students and teachers,

who more than once found a smiling boa

in their top drawer.

(If you look closely at a boa,

you’ll see they’re always smiling,

which is how you know they're friendly.)” 

(From Chapter 13, Please, God, Don’t Make Me Go:

A Foot-Dragger’s Memoir)

 

We were only beginning to realize that

Lomalinda’s teens lived with gusto, pizzazz, and few fears.

 

What an example they were for me—cowardly, wimpy me.