Lexi's Baby Sitter by Emmanuel Arthur (read aloud books txt) 📕

Lexi's Baby Sitter

LEXI’S BABY SITTER *************************NARRATION *************************

 

A Man’s Best Friend happened to be no other but a dog.

Everywhere he went, his best friend followed him with an unwavering banner of loyalty with or without a collar and a leach as symbolized by the non-verbal communication of the constant tail wagging...

 

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

 

 

Beware all ye readers, for this is an anti-hero story where man becomes the antagonist and dog becomes the protagonist in the natural setting OF THE WILD HABITATION OF HUMANITY

 

The Poet Emmanuel Kojo Baah presents

 

************************* LEXI’S BABY SITTER *************************

 

Yes sometimes, a dog dreams, and becomes a hero. And sometimes a dog gets on the nerves of a man. 

 

A dog could make a man angry like a nagging little kid. A dog could whimper.

 

A dog could howl like a wolf.

 

And the most scary, intimidating and annoying sound of all that a dog could make is barking.

 

Hark. A dog harks, and spits, and grinds all of its canines together, ready to tear up any Frankenstein and nibble the bones clean, especially when put on hunger strike.

 

This story is set in Ghana, in Africa, for the convenience of the author’s cinematic aspirations and artistic endeavors to represent it in his filmmaking career. The site where the action and sequence of events had taken place might also peak the curiosity of AIC Education’s Annual Changemaker Challenge participants.

 

The setting is also motivated in serving the purpose of exposing Heritage Academy Farm’s Sustainable Agricultural Site, whose previous manager, was called Appoo Brim.

 

And it came to pass that once upon a time, on this land, that now belongs to Heritage Academy, Appoo Brim had a dog with him when he left the house to go to farm with his wife and their bouncing baby girl.

 

The name of the bulldog was Luxi, and the baby girl was named Lexi. Luxi although he could sing no lullabies was Lexi’s Baby Sitter while Appoo Brim tilled the earth until he could feel sweat on the brim of his forehead. The mother, Asantewaa, made mounds for yams, while heating hot water for Moringa tea.

 

According to Sir Godsway of Heritage Academy, a cup of moringa tea contains enough nutrients equivalent to drinking four cups of milk.

 

Anyways, the nuclear family had settled under a tree which provided enough shade where they had had leur pétit-déjeuner sur l’herbe as illustrated in the painting of the great French Impressionism Painter, Claude Monet.

 

After breakfast, Appoo Brim and Asantewaa left Lexi napping under the tree trusting that in the watchful and capable eyes of Luxi, she would be in safety.

 

Around high noon, when the sun was scorching like fire in a kiln, Luxi started barking like a mad dog. Although Appoo Brim and Asantsewaa heard the raucous, they were exhausted and felt like doing nothing about it in the heat of the sun, but to take a nap themselves and have a siesta as it might have been done in the leaver culture of Daniel Quinn, author of Ishmael, as it might have been done in the garden of Eden.

 

Appoo Brim, who must have lost his temper in the heat of the sun started cursing out the name of Luxi on top of his lungs, calling the bulldog funny names, like Lucy, Luny, Luby, Lucky, Dube, Dumby...

 

Asantsewaa could not understand why Luxi was barking, for no human voice of intrusion had been heard in their midst. They had no company engaging them.

 

But little did she know was transpiring where Lexi was napping under the tree.

 

Lexi was no longer napping. In fact, her eyes were wide open and interrogating the norm, as the subject of an objective realism, the audience of a great spectacular moment. A drama was being staged right in front of her, a confrontation, a conflict between a dog and a snake, between man’s best friend and his worst enemy, a battle between good and evil, between the destroyer and a savior, and she was in the front row of the action, the daughter of man, who might be visually assaulted, victimized and put into a compromising state of being.

Coucou, Asantewaa called out to both Luxi et Lexi. Luxi stopped barking then.

After all the manifestations, Luxi had fought a revolutionary battle, like a knight defending Lexi.

A mighty python had taken a shortcut through the woods, looking for some of the chicken on the farm for dinner, and when it found the chicken wires too small for its head, settled on a duel with Luxi for the grand prize, a hand in marriage to the little princess, in the embodiment of Lexi, to put her through a long sleep, for better or for worse, death is a long long sleep. Death was visiting Lexi to entangle her in the fray.

 

But Lexi’s baby sitter was a tough nut to crack. Luxi’s teeth were screening in action like a Texas Chainsaw Machine, and started attacking the intruder in the territory.

 

After the battle of bulls and horns was settled, the flying colors of reds, whites, and blues, with stars spangled the body of Luxi, the underdog, and Lexi clapped her hands in standing ovation congratulating the victor of such a spectacle and feat.

 

Celebrating too soon, the gladiator bulldog headed towards Appoo Brim, on a victory march, hoping that triumphal arches constructed out of the skeletons of Frankenstein would be uplifted to commend him.

 

Unfortunately, when Appoo Brim saw the cold bloody garment that Luxi wore, he did not commend the warrior, but screamed in anger and tore his clothes, and in his rashness, maimed Luxi with his sword, mistaking the reds of the blood for Lexi’s, thinking the hungry dog might have turned into a rabbis dog, or perhaps a werewolf, and bitten into the skin of the baby girl, instead of being the responsible baby sitter guarding her. Appoo Brim, mistook Luxy for the enemy, a wolf in a lamb’s cloak, picturing the terrifying nature of the horrific scenes straight out the books of Stephen King, who once said, “Fiction is the truth in a lie.”

 

Asantewaa also yelled, “Oh shit. This cannot be true,” and rushed to the place under the tree only to find Lexi playing, re-enacting the scenes with her hands, and performing the victory dance with her hands and feet, as if she was playing DDR.

 

She was spotless, unharmed, without a scratch and moving just fine. Touched, Asantsewaa realized what had happened.

 

She called out Luxi’s name, in celebration, and hailed him savior of Lexi, a braveheart, a mighty dragon that had defeated a mighty python. She grieved for the maimed dog, and cursed the name of Appoo Brim. She wished he was thrown into a dungeon, the killer of the savior of her one and only baby girl. She thought about dungeons and dragons.

 

She thought about the dragon that guarded the entrance into the castle of the little princess, whose eyes had been spit-attacked by the poisons of a mighty python and sustained injuries, only to be toppled down by a slaying giant, physically characterized in the multiple personalities of Fee Fi Fo Fum, worse that the Frankenstein monster, also the embodiment of father of the princess, who should rather have payed an homage, a tribute, in gold and precious treasures, as represented by the dwarfs of the mountains over the hills and under in the tales of J.R.R. Tolkien, author of The Hobbit.

 

Luxi did not deserve an untimely death. He was dead because Appoo Brim judged him in his anger as a criminal and a murderer. And in the process of passing down the judgement, Appoo Brim, had become the criminal and the murderer of himself. For the measure he measured unto Luxi, so he measured unto himself. For when Appoo Brim also came to his senses, remembering the advice not to judge or make a decision when angry, it was too late.

 

A man’s best friend, a dog, was slain. Appoo Brim had betrayed Luxi. The illusiveness of the bloodstains and the judgement he made based on the physical appearance was a mistake. Appoo Brim, had gone astray and played the role of the antagonist. He had done his worst, and accomplished the mission unattained by the trespassing python, with the weapon in his own hands.

 

Then, Appoo Brim trembled and ached, as the venom rubbed on his heart. He had a heart attack upon critically analyzing, reviewing and evaluating the aftermath of the deadly battle, and he drew conclusions, and threw himself on the edge of the same sword he had used to maim Luxi.

 

Asantsewaa had to bury the hatchet with its owner, like a yam inside a mound.

She left for the house with Lexi, who cried leaving without her baby sitter, Luxi.

 

NB: To reconnect or stay in contact with the author, Emmanuel Parke Arthur, email,

earthur1@fandm.edu

Franklin and Marshall College '15 International Student Voice (ISV) Ambassador Ex-President of F&M International Club '12 Bonchek College House PA '12-'13
F&M Film Society

I mind my own business.
My business, Liberal Arts Movie Production, is strictly professional. Respect given with interest is respect received with interest and returns!

Imprint

Publication Date: 10-12-2016

All Rights Reserved

Dedication:
Dedicated to my American host family members, Michael Joseph Minnig, Linda Garrettson, Nana & GG, Rose Koenig, John Koenig, Richard Koenig, Lin Koenig, Kwesi Koomson, Melissa Koomson, Jan Cauffman, Jay Farrow, Michael Owens Minnig, Eric and Carol Metzker, Jordan, and Mariana Garrettson, Brian and Brooks Carroll and to my host sisters, Sage Garrettson, Allison Shepherd, Molly Carroll, Greta Taylor, Kathryn and Elizabeth Metzker, and my host brothers Terran Garrettson and Andrew Carroll.