A Thrilling Adventure To Remember

This is a unique episode that will grab the listener’s attention with a thrilling short story written in English.

I’m not sure if I wrote this short story in 2002 or a little later but I’m positive it was a few months after I finished my GCSE exam when I happily learned that I achieved Grade B in English language subject. Although this might not sound that impressive to a native speaker of English, for a boy from Myanmar who came from a middle class family that could hardly afford the GCSE exam fees for multiple subjects, it was an enthralling achievement, considering how getting such grade in this subject was challenging even for those rich kids who spent nearly a decade in local international schools with much higher language exposure. I believe it was that psychological boost that gave me the motivation to write something imaginative and creative using my then-sharpened language skill after knowing the exam result. Little did I know, however, that I would choose to become a language teacher 13 years later, and that this story would become a podcast episode 20 years later.

By publishing this story as a podcast episode in 2022, I hope to spread and relay the inspiration to the younger generation of teachers and students, while also reminding them to keep their dreams and creativity alive no matter how life gets in the way.

For international listeners who don’t speak Burmese, please note that the story begins at 03:25.

To my friend who urged me to create this story again and better than before:

A Thrilling Adventure To Remember

As my father was a hunter, our family lived in a village near a jungle. The nearest town was miles away from the village. So, every time my father and mother went to the town, I used to have to stay in the house alone. I remember vividly an incident that got me into a thrilling adventure when my parents left me alone in the house to buy necessary things from the town.

That day, in the evening, my parents went to the town in a jeep. First of all, I watched television when they left. Then, leaving the switch of the TV on, I had my dinner upstairs in my room. 

After dinner, the telephone rang. I picked up the phone and realized it was from my father. He told me that they would return late and warned me to be aware of animals from the jungle approaching the house. After that, I remembered I did not shut the kitchen door properly.

Worrying a bit, I went downstairs to lock the doors. First, I went straight into the living room to switch the TV off. All of a sudden, my feet were stiff and could not move as I saw something frightening. To my shock, what I saw was the tail of a tiger sticking out beyond the sofas. The tiger’s body was on the sofa. He had his back to me. My god, a tiger was watching TV in the living room!

I was in a panic. I did not know what to do. But my wits made me move silently back to my father’s room where his guns were kept. There, I took a rifle and telephoned to my father. 

It took me about seven calls before I got on to my dad’s mobile phone. Then I told him all about the trouble I was facing in a trembling voice. He asked me to stay quietly in his room, to keep a gun with me, to lock the doors properly, and to trap the tiger in the house. He said he would be back in an hour with other men to catch the creature.

After that, I came out from the room and quietly went downstairs again. I knew I had to make sure that the tiger was still in the house. It was the only way to trap and catch the tiger. 

There I found that dangerous creature still watching and investigating the TV. Now that all the doors in the house were locked, there were only two of us inside! So, I began to go back upstairs without making a sound.

Suddenly, the alarm of my watch burst out loudly. The tiger was alert and then turned back and saw me. In a panic, I instinctively ran straight back to my father’s room for my life. My heart was beating very fast as the tiger followed me. I ran upstairs as fast as I could. 

Unfortunately, I slipped and fell down onto my knees. I turned around to see whether the tiger was still following me. Then my eyes opened wide as I saw the tiger pounced upon the stairs with a frightening roar. 

I felt a thrill ran through my spirit. Luckily, I saw a whip on the wall beside me. I had learned from my father how to use a whip skillfully since I was young. Then with the help of the whip, I tried my best to fight against the tiger. It was a threatening moment while the creature opened its mouth widely and roared in anger. I realized I should try to use a gun. However, the guns were left in my dad’s room. So, I slowly moved my feet back to the room, but with my body facing the wild creature and making the whip ready in my hand.

As I made a backward step to the room, the tiger also made a forward step towards me. It was really terrifying, and I could feel my clothes wet in sweat. Then, the tiger made a challenging roar and looked at me. For a moment, my eyes met the creature’s. Beyond its eyes was a signal of danger and I could feel it. I sensed the tiger would kill me sooner or later.

At that time, I had reached to my dad’s room, and I opened the door to get in. Meanwhile, the tiger ran forward as quick as a flash and pounced upon me! I had no choice. I dived sideway into the room and locked the door from inside. It was a close shave indeed!

But I could not move then as one part of my shirt was left squeezed in the door. I had to reopen the door to get it back. I did not dare to do it because I could hear the tiger’s roar beyond the door. So, I had to take off my shirt. I thought I was safe, at least for a moment. But I was wrong as I then heard the tiger scratching the door with its claws. I worried the creature would break the door and invade into the room. If so, I had no way to get out and I would die! Therefore, I took a rifle with me and made myself ready.

It was a dreadful hour while I waited alone in the room for my father’s return. Then to my surprise, the tiger stopped roaring and scratching after some moments. Everything was quiet again. It made my curiosity aroused. Was the tiger still near the door? Or did he give up and go back into the jungle? That was what I wanted to find out. So I approached the door step by step until I was very close to it.

Unexpectedly at that moment, I heard a loud crash and saw some pieces of wood from the door being broken. I was nervous as a big hole appeared on the door. In front of me was the tiger’s head trying to get into the room through the hole! The tiger made a very loud roar to frighten me. I was breathless. Then I saw the creature’s claws continued scratching the door to make the hole wider. I knew I was trapped in the room and there was no way to escape. I felt that day was the last day of my life.

Meanwhile, an idea suddenly struck me. I remembered the guns which could be used with special bullets containing anesthetics. Dad always kept those guns in a box under his bed. So I immediately looked for the box in a rush. Fortunately, I found the box and opened it. There I found those guns with powerful anesthetics. I took one out and try to test it as fast as I could. There was no excuse to waste a second and the tiger was about to get into the room. 

The gun worked properly, and I knew what to do. I got down onto my knees and put the gun on my shoulder. That moment, the tiger had just entered the room. It was then watching me. For an instance, I did not make a single movement. I was as still as a stone when the tiger made itself ready to finish me. My position was directly lined up with the tiger’s. So, I concentrated my mind and aimed the gun straight towards the creature’s head.

Finally, with an alarming roar, the tiger ran towards me. I cocked the gun, took a deep breath and waited for the best target. Then, without hesitation, I fired the gun and closed my eyes. For a moment, I did not open my eyes again. I was thinking, “This time, it’s all or nothing!”

After a while, I slowly opened my eyes again. There, I found the unconscious tiger lying on the floor. I knew I was safe. What a relief!

At that time, I heard a jeep driving towards the house. I felt exhilarated. My dad was coming back to me with his men. I ran downstairs uncontrollably. There I saw them rushing into the living room with guns and weapons. At that time, I was shocked, nervous, frightened, and weary because of the danger I had just faced. So, I ran straight to my parents, held them tight and then suddenly lost my consciousness in their arms.

When I regained my consciousness, I found myself back in my room, lying in the bed with my parents sitting beside me. My dad explained me that his men has caught the tiger and brought it to the zoo. It was a relief to hear the good news and I felt a lot better. Dad called me a brave and mighty boy, and I was pleased to hear it. At least, I got a lesson to close the doors properly if necessary. But in fact, it was more than just a lesson – I experienced a really unforgettable and thrilling adventure that I had ever had throughout my whole lifetime. 

And I still remember it.

THE END.