Pongo is a Sumatran orangutan. He is just five years old. In a year, Pongo will be self-sufficient. Now Pongo is still living with his mother.
“Hoa-hem,” yawns Pongo, stretching his arms. “It feels so good to wake up after tired of playing. Well, where’s Mother? Isn’t she coming home yet of foraging? I should go along with her some time ago so I can learn how to forage. I was too busy playing, hence I fell asleep.”
After a while, Pongo’s mother comes. “Hello Pongo. I bring you banana. You must be hungry.”
Pongo nods. “But, why are you so long from foraging?” asks Pongo, his mouth is full of banana.
“Oh, I had to walk rather far than usual,” says Pongo’s mother.
*
The next morning, Pongo faintly hears a roaring noise. What is it? Pongo hasn’t heard any noise like that before. Suddenly Mother shakes him.
“Pongo, get up! We have to get out of here quickly!” cries Mother.
Pongo just follows his mother. They leave their den, and then begin swaying from tree to tree. Some orangutans also leave.
Now the roaring noise stops. Pongo looks back. A huge tree far away slowly falls down. Bam …. Its sound is very loud at the moment it strikes the earth. Startles, Pongo jumps up in sudden. How come that huge tree falls down?
“Come on, Pongo! Hurry up!” cries Mother.
Some time later Pongo and his mother get into a jungle. “I think we will be safe here,” says Mother. And then Pongo’s mother makes a den from branches for the two of them.
“Mother, why we must left in hurry? And how come those huge trees fell down?” asks Pongo afterwards.
Mother takes a deep breath. “It’s because human behavior. If we don’t left quickly, the tree that we live in will fall down, too. And then they will catch us.”
“Why do they cut the trees, Mother? The trees can bring fruits, receive water, make cool air, and be my playground, too,” Pongo is confused.
Mother doesn’t reply and just shakes her head slowly.
Pongo is still curious. “Then why do they want to catch us, Mother?”
“I don’t know … I just know that humans also like to catch tiger and panther. Therefore we rarely see them nowadays,” says Mother dolefully.
“Hm … that means humans are so powerful. They can catch tiger. But, are all of the humans bad?” Pongo wonders. Pongo goes sleep eventually. In his sleep, Pongo dreams of eating various fresh fruits.
*
It has been a few days Pongo eats only leaves and some insects. Fruit foraging becomes harder since so many trees have been cut down. Pongo must eat pickup food of necessity.
“Mother, when can I eat fruits again?” asks Pongo.
“I don’t know yet. Come, follow me,” says Mother.
And then Pongo follows Mother climbing up to the top of the tree.
“Look, there. That’s jungle we have lived in before!” Mother points toward a spread of land faraway. The jungle Pongo has has lived in before has become a spread of vast land. And then Pongo looks at another side. There are many fruit trees.
“Look, Mother, look there! We can took some fruits!” cries Pongo gleefully.
Mother is silent for a while. “But … that fruit plantation belongs to human, Pongo.”
“Let’s go there, Mother. I haven’t eaten fruits for long time,” Pongo pleads.
Pongo is glad, he gets his mother to take the fruits in human plantation. However, Pongo is not allowed to follow her. Pongo must wait in their den since taking fruits in human plantation is so dangerous.
*
It takes so much time to wait, but Mother hasn’t been home yet from foraging. Whereas, it is getting dark. Pongo is sad. Perhaps something has happened to Mother. It is late at night. Pongo falls asleep.
The next day, Mother hasn’t been home yet. Pongo comes to the plantation no matter what. There he can’t find his mother. Pongo sees a human carries a long object. What’s that? Suddenly … “Baaang!”
Startles, Pongo runs frighteningly. But, his upper arm is getting hurt. By his pain, Pongo is no longer strong to climb up the tree. Finally, Pongo is unconscious.
When he opens his eyes, he senses that he is in a strange place. “Where am I?” says Pongo. He sees that the wound on his arm has been wrapped in a white bandage.
A moment later comes a human. Pongo is horrified, but the human gives him a friendly smile. The human carries Pongo affectionately, and then brings him out.
Pongo sees many trees outside and orangutans are swaying happily. Apparently, Pongo is at the orangutan shelter in Gunung Leuser National Park, North Sumatra.
Pongo looks for his mother. Is his mother there?[]
VINA MARIA AGUSTINA
Writer, lives in Tangerang
From Kompas Anak, January 24, 2016
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar