The arrival of the storm was apparent. It was not just the clouds that signalled the storm’s coming, but the weather had become similar to that of a tropical rainforest. The clouds engulfed the atmosphere. The mysterious forest I lived in was already eerie but with this weather, it was welcoming Darth Vader into the forest.
Ohh by the way. I am an otter. Like all otters, I enjoyed my surroundings regardless of how eerie it had become. It was just before sunset and with the storm announcing its imminent arrival, I was sure that I would be in for a rough night. The gale was howling and the trees were taking the brunt of the bad weather.
I decided to take a quick dip in the water before I hit the sack. The lake was calm and it soothed me. Once the storm was over, this lake would have collected a lot more water. I swam gracefully and basked under the darkness. Then, crackkkk!
The storm had introduced itself and lightning had struck a tree down just metres away from where I was. I whimpered. A storm was not good for otters especially for an otter like me who loved a snuggly atmosphere along a nice juicy trout.
As I began to clamber onto the bank, the storm raged. The rain was picking intensity; thunder and lightning bullied the other sounds into quietness. I scampered to shelter but everything around me looked defeated by nature. It was as if nature was being put to the test against nature!!
But I was just an otter, and I could not possibly climb the tree like a monkey and growl at the storm to stop like a tiger. So, I did what otters were born to do. That would be to sleep. But then I realized that there was a lot that otters like to do such as swimming and playing. But if I continued this list, you probably would fall asleep before I do so maybe I will continue my list another day.
Outside, the gale was deafening and trees seemed to be giving up. I took a curious look outside and whoosh!! A sudden gust of wind picked me up and I began to swirl. I began to feel dizzy and nauseous. I closed my eyes and for my otter heart, this ordeal was too much. Rain was pattering and petrichor was the only thing comforting me.
It seemed like I was in an endless rollercoaster but then my ride seemed to have ended abruptly. I had crash landed onto a tree branch which had given away because of the sheer impact. Now I began to freefall from a good 15 metres until thuddd!! Well, I reached the ground in one piece.
The storm failed to subside, and my dear lake was out of sight. I had a long day, and my curiosity had caused all this trouble. My otter ancestors always used to praise curiosity, but that wretched philosophy had distanced me from my favourite trout lake.
So as if it was normal for an otter who had travelled in knots during a storm to sleep, I just closed my eyes and I was out. I had wonderful images of trout and lakes while I was asleep and by the time I woke up, my forest still had a lot of trees. But most of them were down and only a few remained upright.
I seemed to have survived but an otter needs his lake. So, I surveyed the damage and went off in search for a snuggly new home and a lake full of trout and salmon. I set off and I hope you have wished me luck. This storm may have displaced me, and I sure did not enjoy the ride here but at least you got a nice laugh out of a poor otter’s survival story. If there is anything I learnt from this storm, it would be to never ever, ever be awake during a storm before or after it and of course to not stick your nose out during a storm.
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Credits for “The Storm That Stole the Otter’s Lake”
Cover Image has been made with Canva Magic Media.
Inside Image Credits:
1. https://stockcake.com/i/stormy-forest-landscape_1257729_835607
2. https://efi.int/articles/storm-damage-forests
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