The Last Fall of the House Lizard

It was a lazy day. My partner went early to work, and the kids were already in school. I grabbed a plate and a spoon and was ready to eat at the table when something fell from the ceiling onto the floor beside our dining table. I was a bit shocked. I thought a snake just fell down.

I slowly nearer to the thing that didn't move on the floor, and only to find out, it was not a snake, it was a big house lizard or commonly known to us as "Tuko". It was around 12 inches long, grayish with orange spots all over its body. Its yellow eyes were not moving but opened. I really thought it was dead, but after a few seconds, its legs began to move.

Then I saw red flesh in his mouth coming out, and it was like his tongue, but bigger. I grabbed a clean cloth and picked the lizard up, and coated him with the cloth. He couldn't stand, though his legs were moving. He stayed in the cloth for hours. I was trying to let him sip some water, but he couldn't, so I put a few drops of water into that flesh tongue-like thing in his mouth. And he liked it. I didn't know what was wrong with this lizard. Was he sick, or was that flesh coming out of his mouth may hurt, or maybe he was being choked by other predators? I really did not know.

I was thinking he might be hungry after hours of lying on the cloth I wrapped him with, so I tried to find food for him. I went to the storage room at the back of our house, and I was like a lizard hunting for cockroaches. That sounded crazy, but I didn't care anyway. Nobody saw what I did anyway...hahahha... I came back with a cockroach in my hand. Then, I tried to feed him the pest. His eyes were moving and seemed delighted with what I had for him. He tried to move and was trying to bite the food, but he couldn't. I was sad. If only I could help him with that red flesh sticking out from his mouth so that he can eat.

In the evening, when I came back home with my partner, I found the lizard still lying on that cloth, but it was not moving anymore. He was dead. I felt a tiny itch in my heart, and I felt pity for this lovely creature. I knew he'd been watching us for years from our ceiling and walls. If only I had seen him earlier, before his situation got worse, so I could have helped him. I buried him at the back of our house, and there was sadness.

These creations of God need to be conserved, deserve to be cared for and loved.