… but a ‘Gold-Mine’ remains in his chest

By Abdool A. Aziz

HIS parents deserted him. His grandmother Nellie cared for him. She was very poor and many days he ‘drifted’ around foraging for food. He wanted to work but no one in his native village of Victoria wished to hire him. They labeled him a ‘Bum’, but inside, a kind heart was beating. One day he would be their pride and joy.

He begged his grandma for a loan. With this meager sum, he travelled to Bartica, then to Mahdia and on to Kamarang in the Potaro. He went “Solo Pork-Knocking”. For months he subsisted on some yellow pebbles but he had a female friend who would provide for him in times of need. Her name was Isabella.

One day, while ascending a steep hill, he slipped on a mossy rock and fell into a shallow stream. Though shaken and bruised, he took off the batel from his head and began to jig. Nothing but sand and stone came his way. Then one final swoop and there it was – a nugget. He couldn’t believe his eyes. He began to sing and dance.

THE ROBBERY
Just then, two bushwhackers passed by. They heard the commotion and decided to investigate and the unsuspecting Rodwell happily showed his find. But this was a stupid mistake. As he walked to the trail to take him home, he was ambushed. He was beaten and relieved of the lump of gold. The bush thieves made good their escape. He related his fortune and then the bad luck to Isabella in tears.

She tried to comfort him and promised to demarcate a portion of her farm to help him be a farmer. No more pork-knocking. He did well in farming, and Isabella planned to marry him. One day, far away in the bush, he heard the growl of a tiger that was nearby, then a scream, and a yell that was Isabella’s voice. He grabbed his cutlass and in haste tumbled and hurried to the direction of the scream.

A tiger was mauling his girlfriend. He dropped the cutlass and picked up a piece of wood. He poked and shouted at the angry beast, and it let loose of Isabella who ran for her life all bloodied. The animal retreated into the bush, but just as Rodwell sat down to rest, the attack came and it was fatal.

The wildcat went to his jugular with those long canines. Just then, a few men appeared. One tried to shoot the monster that had dragged his lifeless body to the tree root. No Shooting was allowed. The Tiger is a protected animal; a national treasure. They chased him away with sticks and were hollering.

He sat on a high tree limb, yawning as Roddy’s body was taken away like a rag doll. He paid the ultimate price for saving a life and one dear to him. The entire settlement wept. Isabella broke down.

Her wounds were painful but her heart was more agonising. Rodwell was deemed a hero and given a grand send off. The drifter/bum from Victoria was an icon of bravery. His nugget was gone but a golden heart lives on. At his interment, Isabella declared in tears “You are salvation, I marry you for life.” Grief diminished for life. She died soon after and was placed next to her hero.

The tiger still roams the bushes, it is his domain. We encroach on it.
So sorry Roddy – so sorry but thanks.