simplicity

Sometimes what lies ahead can be frightening. The legs are heavy therefore, movement is impossible. Fear creeps in and the stomach knots in to a fist. As the cobra extends its hood like wings, every nerve of your body tensed into rigidity. One strike and it is over. You feel its paralysing venom sipping into your blood.

But what do you do when a King Cobra coincides face to face with you?

"Dad, it’s a snake."

"Ssshs! Shut-up, Sean. And don't move!” Mitch warned his son.

Five-year-old Sean looked curiously at his father who was weltered in sweat. His entire body weight was resting on his elbows. After 5 minutes he had problems fixing on one position. He started to tumble to the side. However, his eyes never left the piercing cold stare of the cobra. Its forked-tongue vibrating to a faint "hsss".

"Can we keep him as a pet?"

"Sean, if you don't shut the f*** up, we will die!"

"Why?"

"Because the slightest wrong move will anger the snake to attack us!"

"Then we make him happy. I will give him my candy bar."

Sean immediately pulled out a packet of sweets from his pocket and waved it in front of the snake.

"Dad, Mr. Snake likes candies." he giggles.

"Put that down and stop moving!" His muscles tightened as he tried to stop Sean from getting up.

But something long and slippery that glided over his legs halted him.

"I am going to die!" he screamed and pushed Sean away. He lay flat on the floor and watched the cobra swim between Sean and him.

Its head suddenly jerked-up preparing to seal Mitch’s fate. There was no time for Mitch to say his last prayers and to think of his son. He didn’t want to die.

However the cobra was behaving strangely. Instead of crunching its fangs into Mitch’s flash, it hovered above his chest in a ceremonial fashion as if to make fun of him. It slowly rotates its upper body to look at Sean.

Mitch released a sigh of relief. “Anyone but me,” he thought.

He turned his head to watch the cobra swaying left and right in front of Sean. Sean laughed and played with it as if the lethal reptile was made of rubber. There was not a splinter of fear in his eyes. The camaraderie lasted for a few minutes.

The cobra puts an end to delicate swinging. It erected its body to full attention. Sean extended his hand to touch its head and simultaneously, the cobra politely bowed at him.

As fast as lightning, the cobra swiveled around to face Mitch. Its menacing forked-tongue pulsated before his nose.

“Hsssss…heartless coward…hsssss!” were heard escaping from its tongue.

The cobra gently slithered out of the store room. Mitch believed that he had imagined hearing the snake speak to him. The impending danger must have caused him to hallucinate.

"Shiva,” Sean said.

“What?”

“Mr. Snake told me his name is Shiva.”