The Superat

The next blog was created by my father who is a freelance writer. He previously worked for Knight of Columbus Luzon Jurisdiction and a Bi-Lingual magazine. He also posted some articles with Kerigma and other Magazines in the Philippines.

Our Rat Superhero

Once, a million years ago, there appeared on planet Earth a superhero rat. This was when the Earth was young; when man, whom God created to watch over all creatures, became so unkind to the lowly rats, which lived like prisoners in the dark cellars, in holes, in the crack in the walls, in the gape in woods.

Afraid of man, the rats lived in fear and they lived where no man can see them or touched them; and, when they came out to the open, chance in a million, they died from the cruel hand of man.

In the rice field, when the rice crops suffered disease from pests, rats were blamed for the infestation. No matter if the disease was brought by other causes like the locusts eating the rice stems, ants eating the roots, and other insects boring holes on the leaves, it was blamed on the rats.

In one campaign to get rid of rats, man swept across the rice field in hundreds and thousands, armed with sickles, hoes and long knives, attacking and killing million of rats. This was called the Million Rats Campaign.

Those in government employ received their pay check only if they showed up in office with five dry rat tails each employee. Those in private employ had to show five dry tails each before they can get their salary. Even their children in schools got their report cards only when they showed dry rat tails. At their homes, rat tails hung in the clothes lines to dry.

The stench of dead rats hung in the air for weeks and months before the campaign ended. While rats were saddened, mankind was happy with the result of the campaign; because they thought that they had gotten rid of rats.

Rats fled in millions to the dark forests where prowling animals killed them. Driven to the desert, they died from the heat of the sand and the sun, and hunger and thirst for lack of food and water. Exposed from any cover, they were prey to the carnivorous eating birds. When they ran through the foliage, and were lucky enough to escape being caught by snakes and lizards, the thorns in the thickets pierced them to death.

When they hid in caves and became used to the dark, they talked of the tales of horror that had come upon them. They envied the bats hanging in the ceilings of the cave because the bats, though they have body like rats, have wings with which they can fly.

But the rats learned to laugh at their own miseries. They joked about the rats who have no tails because the man in his hurry to get many tails, some to be sold to those who dare not catch rats, after hacking the tail from the rats, mindlessly let the rats escaped. Was not it only the tail he was after?

By smell, the rats learned to hunt food in the dark. They listened to footsteps. If the footsteps are bigger, they know their owners are much bigger. They learned to become as sly as the fox of the desert; swift as the wind; and became good stalkers of the ravens for the leftovers.

They steadily became good hunters. Because of the need to survive, they developed their natural ability. They have easily adapted to their new environment. But they said, “A rat’s always a rat.” So, they longed to have someone to deliver them from their hiding places; a brave and strong rat that can save them from dangers. Why can’t they walk freely? Why can’t they come out in the open and not hide in the dark?

Somehow, the God of the rats, the same Almighty Lord of All, creatures big and small, had listened to the wishes of the lowly rats. A handsome bat fell in love with a pretty little rat, and although they have marked differences, the love that developed between them was greater than their differences. Their anatomy being alike, except that bats have wings and sharp teeth, they reciprocated each other’s need for love.

And so, many moons ago, the handsome bat took the pretty little rat to the highest trunk of a giant tree where they made their nest of love. Two lovers, their shadows silhouetted by the silver moon, embraced and made love in the giant tree.

To the two was born our Rat Superhero. So very like a handsome bat, but also so very like its pretty mother rat. Our little rat hero when it grew up developed a very strong wings and teeth like the father.

One day, while hunting for food with father, our little hero saw a group of rats fearfully scavenging for food in the forest. It saw a big snake sneaked through the shrubs, waiting in ambush. Then, the snake slithered its way where the rats were foraging for seeds in the dark forest.

Suddenly, before the snake could make a kill, our rat hero swooped down and caught the head of the snake by its strong hands, and flew the snake up, up, through the clouds, and, then, squeezed the snake with a strong vise grip around the head, tore the head with its strong teeth, until the head cracked and crumpled, before our hero rat dropped the snake to the ground, dead.

The horrified rats saw our hero caught the snake and the dropped on the ground of the dead snake. The young hero flew away before they could thank it. When our young hero told its mother the thing it did, the mother cried. Surprised at the cry, the young rat apologized. “I’m sorry, Momma. I will not do that again,” it said.


Momma replied: “It’s a cry of joy, my son. You have helped my people. Your poppa and I have not told you about us. About how we fell in love in spite of your father being a bat and I am a rat.”

And our young hero answered. “This was why I felt my blood surged up when I saw your people and the snake about to kill them. Your people are my people, too. From now on I will watch over them. I will save them from harm.”

Mother, thanking our hero, said: “God is so good to us. Despite our lowliness, He made someone to watch over us. Your poppa will be glad to be used by God to help our people despite not being a rat.”

The father bat appeared at the door. “Momma, you know that I love you, and I love our son. I will look after our beloved son. Your people will be my people.”

Many million rats ago the old folk rats were still telling this story. By words of mouth this tale of our young superhero rat was made into poetry and prose, and music. Many generations of rats heard, and still hear, of their superhero rat, and they will be encouraged to weave dreams, to become very brave and strong, afraid no longer of man or of no other; become prayerful and faithful to their God, who made heaven and earth, and to love where faithful love can grow.

By: nerfe sagleba
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