Then a boar came into sight

        MY HEART beat faster when I saw my father cleaning our new gun. I had always wanted to hunt with a gun. But my father would not let me touch it. Then one evening I asked, "Pa, please  let me try hunting with the gun tomorrow." As usual he answered: "Haven't I told you before, you're too young? You're only sixteen. It's too dangerous for a young boy to hunt with a gun."
        "I'll be very careful..............
        "Enough," he said; "Tomorrow you must look after your brothers and sisters while mother and I work on the farm."
        The next day when our parents set out for the farm, I stayed at home to look after the children. "Another uninteresting day," I thought. Then gun was in its rack and I wanted so much to feel it. Here was my chance to show my father that I was no longer a child.
        I became restless during the long morning. After lunch I put my youngest brother to sleep. The long house was almost deserted; most of the villagers were busy working on their plots of  land.
        I walked up and down the verandah. As I passed Tajau's door for the fourth time, I saw a group of children standing round a basket. I joined them. Four puppies had just been born. The children were talking and petting the tiny creatures. Apoi, my cousin, was there too. I had an idea. Apoi loved puppies. I knew he must want them very much.
        "Apoi, do you like these puppies?" I asked.
        "Yes. but they're Asong's," he replied pointing to a dirty-faced girl.
        "We'll keep the puppy with the best teats," Asong smiled.
        "Which one?" I asked.
        "I'm not sure; we must let grandpa examine them."
        "Apoi," I whispered, "if the puppy has good teats would you like to buy it?'
        "Yes, I loved these pups but  I have nothing to buy them with."
        "I'll buy them for you if you promise to do me a favour."
        "I promise."
        "Wait, let's hear what grandpa has to say about them," I said.
        Asong's grandpa was smoking quietly as we came into the room. When he saw us, he put down his pipe. He looked closely at each of  the pups.  Finally he said:  "This one is good," and gave it to his grand-daughter.  Asong was very pleased and said, "I'll keep this one."
        She would spoil my plan.  I begged her to sell it to Apoi.  She refused.  I bought her hornbill feathers, a half-broken mirror to barter for it; she would not take any of them.
        "What do you want?" I asked
        She looked at my new bead necklace. "Give me your necklace." she demanded.  It was my only necklace.  But I wanted to hunt.  So I gave the puppy to Apoi.
        "What do you want me to do?" Apoi asked.
        "Will you take care of my brothers and sisters for the rest of the day?"    I asked him.
        "Yes, yes,"  he laughed.  "Where are you going?"
        "Oh, that's a secret."
        I rushed into our room, and feeling very excited, pulled out the gun from its rack, took some bullets and ran to the forest.
        I held the gun close to me as I walked in search of wild boars.  I became tired.  Then suddenly I saw footmarks of wild boars.  I was very excited.
        There was a huge tree covered with fruit, and monkeys were fighting with each other over the fruit on the treetop. This seemed a good place to wait for the boars, so I cut some leafy branches and stuck them into the muddy ground around me, and I hid there.  I loaded the gun and could hardly wait to pull the trigger.
        I sat still for almost an hour; but no boars came.  The monkeys were still busy fighting over the fruit in the tree.   Should  I shoot a monkey when he was eating.  Bang!  I was frightened.  Every monkey leapt to the ground and disappeared.  I had missed!  Then there was silence.
        It was late.  My legs ached and I began to feel lonely and afraid.  Suddenly a twig snapped.  Then a boar came into sight.  It came closer, sniffing hard at the ground.
        My heart beat faster.  I waited for the animal to come nearer.  When it was about five yards away, I pulled the trigger once  more.  When the smoke cleared, I saw that the boar had rolled down the valley, and I ran after it.
        The leaves on the ground were stained with blood where the boar had rolled them.  The blood stained path ended at the wide stream.  "A boar at last!"   I shouted happily.
        I tied the boar's legs together and dragged it down-stream.
        By now the forest was very dark and the noises frightened me.  I thought they were ghosts.  The eerie voices sounded me something like "O o o o o oh!  Wh-e-e......re-e-e-e..ou-ou!"
        As I walked on the noise became louder.  I felt so weak and couldn't walk another step.  I was terrified of the strange noise and decided I must try to shoot the creature.  I covered the boars with dead leaves and hid behind the bushes.  "Oh, oh....we-e ou-ou!"  The noise came nearer, and nearer.  Suddenly it stopped.  Then I saw someone holding a torch light, rushing through the bushes.
        I heard footsteps and looked through the bushes.  I shouted with relief.  "Father, I'm here!"  I cried.
        He was very happy to see that I was safe.  But when he saw the gun he became angry:  "I told you not to touch that gun."
        "I have killed a boar,"  I cried, pushing the leaves off the dead boar.  Then he grinned and shouted,    "Well done son, well done!  But we must go home quickly.  Your mother's worried about you.  That's why I came search for you.  She will be very proud of you."  He was no longer angry and together my father and I walked back to the long house.