How Fast Can We Run (Revealing, Reality)

When I was little my cousin and myself went for our usual four hour hike into the Canadian wilderness. We would pack buttered bread, cheese, and some sausage and head out early in the morning. I remember thinking that I was the luckiest kid in the world to be able to experience this. I actually felt part of nature as I walked the winding deer paths up the mountainside. The smell if pine needles seemed to provide me with exhilarating amounts of oxygen. We would walk as far as we could in an hour and a half. Stop and set up a day camp. Even though we were only seven and eight it was no problem for us to make a campfire. There we sat watching the crackling flame and eating our lunch. We never took water because we were always close enough to a creek. If you were thirsty all you had to do was lay down on your belly and slurp up the fresh creek water. If you tried to use a cup or your hands you would stir up the bottom and be drinking sand. One day right around this time of year, late August, I was doing just this. I was slurping away when I noticed a Mountain Lion drinking from the same creek. He was only about an arms length away from me as he put his face to the water. His tongue flapping as he drank. I still remember today what I felt when I looked into his black eyes. It was not fear or panic, it was overwhelming respect. The animal was so beautiful and so strong looking. I know now that I was lucky he was more thirsty than hungry or else this would be a very different story. I just laid there and kept slurping up the water and so did the Mountain Lion. It seemed like he knew me almost like we were close friends. It probably only lasted about two minutes before he sped off down the mountain side, but it felt like hours. After the big cat left my cousin, who was climbing down from a pine tree, ran over to me. He asked if I was okay and had me promise not to tell our parents or it would be the end of our hikes. He always carried a knife and a pellet gun after that day when we went hiking. I always kept a close look too, hoping I would get to see my friend again. I never did and my cousin shot many birds when we hiked now, which meant BBQ quail on the campfire instead of buttered bread, cheese, and sausage. Its a memory that I will always keep. not just because of the encounter with a Mountain Lion, but because of how many things changed after it happened.