Chapter 8.
Just a few metres down stream was a giant lily. It looked like a garbage can lid upside down and smelt like it to. The under side was spiky and I watched the fish trying to get past the spikes to eat the lily but they were all turned away with a sore nose. The trees grew nearly all the way down to the water and in some places the trees were half-submerged where the river had burst its banks. Just near me was what looked a little like a large tree fern. The leaves were over a foot long and nearly that wide. The stalks the leaves were on were nearly an inch thick and soft with juices. Just beyond that was a tree that really belonged in a place like Hawaii. It was just like a palm tree except that its trunk was covered with huge needle like spikes. The spikes were over two inches long and looked vicious. I declined to test their spikiness an instead turned my attention back to the bank. The bank was made mostly of dried mud, with splatters of soil here and there and the occasional rock. The rocks were covered with a huge variety of moss. On one of the rocks there was a red growth that looked a lot like little umbrella's. These stood out from the sticky white mass that they grew from. On a rock next to that was a single little fungus. I was only about the size of a small apple and grew on the same stuff the little umbrella's did. It was composed of about four little growths that were like egg cups. Around the edge was a ridge of tiny little hairs. For some reason it made me feel sick and I moved away from it.
As I did so I noticed what looked like a vine with pears on it. On further inspection I found that the fruits on the vine resembled Avocado fruits and straight away I wondered if it were edible. I was starving and after only a few seconds of thought I broke one of the fruits off and started to peel back the thick skin. The inside was a greeny yellow and I wondered if the fruit was ripe. It didn't matter. I ate the whole thing and went back for seconds. It didn't taste too good but at the current time I wasn't prepared to be picky. Soon I had eaten all the fruits within reach. I sat down on the beach, sedated with food. My eyes drooped suddenly and I collapsed into the mud.
I awoke slowly and straight away checked the area around me. I expected to feel sick but there was no death sentencing pain or headache. I got up and, after collecting a few avocado-like fruits, began my long walk down river. Along the way I noticed that rain was coming as there were lots of frogs calling and every now and again I would catch a glimpses of one hoping through the undergrowth. I walked on, occasionally stopping for a bite to eat and a rest.