CHAPTER 36
Over dinner, Warble, Mary, Ward, and Sojourner Truth (the liaison of Tinga Tinga village) spoke about the history of Africa.
An idea came to Warble. Not a way to make money for himself (as he didn’t care about money anymore, and had not only accepted that it no longer existed, but was now glad of that, and agreed wholeheartedly with the new way of doing things), but a way to help others.
This was a new experience for Warble, and he marveled at how good it made him feel to consider such a project, to be undertaken solely ‘for the common good.’
“Mary, would you mind it if Ward and I went on a trip into the past, to solve some of these problems — to nip them in the butt, so to speak?”
“It’s bud, not butt, Warble,” Mary gently corrected her husband. “But what do you mean?”
“Of course, it depends on whether Ward is willing to go with me” — Warble said, glancing over at his old employee/new friend.
“And that depends on what you have in mind, Warble — what kind of plan it is . . . what the goal is,” Ward answered.
“It’s this,” Warble began, and told Ward about his idea to go back in time to 1885 with the Fast Forward & Back. As he then explained, that was when King Leopold of Belgium began his pillaging of the Congo, a travesty which Ms. Truth had been talking about. Leopold’s misrule ended up deliberately and directly causing the death of millions of people in that part of Africa.
“If we can put a stop to it by harnessing the power of the animals, we can save millions of lives. And set a precedent for future generations. The animals will then know what to do to prevent further such depredations: Once they are coached, they can continue with the teaching of their children and grandchildren, passing it on from generation to generation.”
Ward had grown fond of Africa and its native inhabitants and so, after shaking his head (literally) as if trying to comprehend how such a mind-boggling thing could have happened — not only the depths of depravity and evil that Leopold caused, but also Warble changing so drastically so quickly — he declared himself to be “all in” for the work.
“You have changed to such an extent, Warble, that I can barely believe it!” Ward said. “But I do believe it. And it’s such a ‘sea change’ that I think a nickname change is in order. A shift this dramatic deserves a ceremony of some sort.”
“I’ve already thought of that, Ward. I want to no longer be called ‘Consumer Warble’ as I previously did. Let the world forget that old name. I wish to be known henceforth as ‘Eco Defender’ Warble.”
“Eco Defender?” Mary asked.
“Yes, Mary, Eco Defender,” Warble said. “Some people — myself included — used to erroneously call people who defended the earth and its creatures ‘Eco Terrorists.’ But they — we! — are actually Eco Defenders, not Eco Terrorists. We do what’s necessary to defend the world against those whose projects would oppress people, animals, and the earth itself.”
So you see, Warble, of all people, was the one to come up with the name that we subsequently adopted for ourselves as a group — our team name.
Sojourner Truth smiled. “You certainly have improved since the last time I saw you, ‘Eco Defender’ Warble. The difference is like night and day. Mary, if you agree to allow your husband to leave you for a while to do this good work, you can stay with me while he’s away, if you like.”
Mary thought it over. This was all still new to her, too. She didn’t want to be away from Warble, especially now that he had changed so much for the better and was thus so much more enjoyable to be around. Not only that, but she worried for him, too, going back to such a dangerous period in history. At the same time, though, she felt that she shouldn’t hold him back from doing good for others. After meditating on it, Mary realized that she should be glad that for once in his life Warble wanted to do good, without thinking only of himself.
“All right, Warble, you have my blessing, if you promise to be careful. Ward, will you please go with him?” Mary asked.
“Yes, I will,” was Ward’s curt response.
“Please keep an eye on Warble for me, Ward,” Mary pleaded. “You know he can get a little . . . overly exuberant, at times.”
Warble frowned at that description of his personality.
“We will look out for each other, Mary,” Ward and Warble said, simultaneously and in unison.
They both laughed at this. Then Mary joined in.
“Sojourner, will you allow me to use a plot of ground while the boys are gone?” Mary asked her new host. “I would like to try my hand — or my hopefully green thumbs, that is — at growing some Bougainvilleas.”
“Absolutely, Mary!” Sojourner responded, smiling. “In fact, we can stake out a spot in the community garden for that. Take as much space as you want. I have some seeds I can give you for that purpose.”
‘The boys’ had scarcely begun to discuss their plans for an immediate departure when Albert entered the room.
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