I don't remember much about my neonatehood (neonate means infant, btw). To be honest, I don't think many people do. But I'm not people, I'm a snake. I do vaguely recall being piled up with my many siblings - how many there were, I am not sure. There were a lot of us at any rate.
I do, however, distinctly remember the day my life changed forever. I was sleeping, as usual, when suddenly I was snatched out of my cage by a warm, human hand and stuffed into some sort of sack. At first I panicked. It was dark, but light still filtered through the thin material. That was until I felt myself placed inside something. Then it was totally dark. I wasn't sure what was going to happen, but I was scared. Was I going to get eaten? I am pretty sure humans eat meat, and I was definitely snack sized. The movement of the box made me nauseous. It was a good thing I hadn't eaten for a couple of weeks. After what felt like an eternity, I realized there was no way out, so what else could I do but sleep?
I was woken abruptly with the low murmur of what I assumed were voices. Not that I could tell very well... everything's kind of muffled for the snake ears, you know? We have inner ears, but we have nothing to really focus the sound on the outside. Imagine plugging your ears and trying to listen to something. That's what it's like... the bassy sounds come through the best. Anyway, the container I was in began to rock from side to side. I was moving relatively quickly. Vibration.... perhaps a door slammed. Then the container shook slightly and there was a low grating sound. Light filtered through the fabric of the bag once more and I felt myself being lifted gently, sack and all.
Within seconds light poured into the sack as it was opened. A large, seemingly excited face peered down at me. I sniffed. It was a human female. After lifting a strange device and flashing me in the face with a blinding light a few times, I was then removed from the bag. Her hands were warm, but I didn't care. I was scared. Perhaps if I slithered I could get away! I tried.... and failed. Miserably, at that. My tummy, void of food, gurgled embarrassingly. Would I be able to find food? Was I going to be food? I wasn't sure. This was all new to me. I longed for the comfort of my own box back home.
It wasn't long before I found myself placed in an incredibly large and spacious enclosure. I'd never had such room before! I could stretch from end to end and not even touch the edges. The floor was covered in tiny pieces of wood and dirt, with a water-filled rock on one end and a small... erm.. well, I know it's a tree now, but at the time, I had no idea. I'd never seen anything like it before! And there was a small soft blue blanket in one corner... and a log hide thing. It was pretty shwanky as far as homes go. But honestly, I didn't care. I was scared and hungry... and certain the human would eat me.
I tried to scare her off by hissing. It didn't work. She didn't seem scared of me at all!! Instead, she brought me food! Of course, I was starving, so I ate right away. And then I curled up in the blanket. It was soft, warm, and comfortable. The human sat nearby and hummed, low enough for me to feel it. I'm pretty sure she had another snake with her too, but I couldn't see, and quite frankly, all I wanted to do was sleep. It was a long and scarey day.
And that is how I came to live with my human. We have been together for five years now and it has been a good five years at that.
The photo was taken the day I arrived, alongside one of my human's many dolls. :)~
