The+Snake

It was a beautiful sunny afternoon at the zoo in Washington D.C. A rush of glee trickled down my spine as I watched all of the animals wandering in their habitats with excitement. Zoos were my favorite, and in my opinion, viewing exotic animals was never a bore. After my mom and I finished touring most of the attractions at the zoo, I suggested we go into the reptile house. Mom was reluctant, but I eventually won her over.  When we entered the murky atmosphere of the reptile house, I began to rethink my idea. We stopped at the first few glass windows with a little anxiety. Mom asked if I wanted to leave, but of course I refused. The next exhibit in our path contained a long, black slithering snake. The snake stared into my eyes with threat and danger. I knew he was hinting “beware” or “watch out”, but I did not understand the message in time. In the next minute or so, the care-taker of the creatures brought a rodent to the snake. It was meal time! Once the rodent was dropped in the snake’s territory, I gasped, trembled and looked away. After a few seconds, I looked back in the snake’s direction and saw the half- devoured rodent hanging from its mouth. The snake’s fangs were chomping like a saw, and the rodent was digested in nearly a minute. Blood dripped rapidly from the snake’s mouth and I covered my eyes. My mom and I immediately left the reptile room and headed back to the main area of the zoo.  Because of the incident in the reptile room at the Washington zoo, I developed a fear of snakes. The snake was a vampire, blood-sucking, spooky and all. Whenever I see a snake, I cringe, cover my eyes, and run away because I recall the fearful memory. I hope to overcome my fear of snakes in the future, but I do not think I will, thanks to my experience.