Intruder
September 19, 2005
As I was sorting laundry last night, movement from a darkened area of our house caught my eye. My heart hiccupped in my chest as I jerked my head toward the movement. Realizing what I saw, I looked him in the eye and slowly started inching backward.
Roger had just left to take out the trash, and I was in the house by myself. Keeping both eyes on him I started feeling around with my hands for some sort of sharp, heavy object for my protection. All I found were dirty socks and collared shirts.
We stared at each other, and he started to move in. I screamed and rocked back on my heels, prepared to bolt out the door and into Roger's arms.
Just then, the front door opened. Either another was coming in, or Roger was coming to my rescue. I looked away from his cavernous, piercing black eyes in time to see Roger closing the front door.
"Sweeeeeetttiiiieee! Sweeetttiieeeeee!! I need your help! Hurry! Come here!" Roger sauntered over, despite my frightened state and plea for help.
"What? What is it?" He towered over where I was still squatting, in the middle of a sea of dirty laundry.
"Look! There!" I forcefully thrusted my finger and aimed toward my opponent. I lifted a black trouser sock where he had taken refuge from my menacing glare, and then I squealed when he started running across the living room.
Roger gave me a look that could have easily said, "You're such girlie scaredy-cat." Instead, he leaned over and gently scooped it into his hand, telling me, "Sweetie pie, it's just a baby bouteakey" (pronounced boo-tee'-kee, similar to a salamander, but this is the Filipino name for it).
He took it outside, allowing it to roam free with its family. When he came back in, Roger asked if I really was afraid of the baby salamander. I paused, thought about it for a moment, and discovered that I couldn't remember a time in my life when I have ever really been afraid of insects or amphibians, except snakes and certain spiders.
I told Roger, "No, not really. But doesn't it make you feel all manly and heroic to come in the house and rescue me from certain death?!?"
