“A Town Mouse and A Country Mouse”

Technical University of Kenya

Creative Writing

Dr. Omwoha

Abdullatif Ahmed ACJI/05607/2013S

“A Town Mouse and A Country Mouse”

Dramatic Monologue

(The Town Mouse)

Oh the country, so quiet, so serene, so beautiful. The air here is fresh the ambience cool and calm. I could get used to this environment, well if it wasn’t for their barbaric lifestyle, surviving on roots like mere ants, ants surely.

I don’t think I can live without my sublime delicacies, I would start with oat meal, with a sprinkle of flour. Then I’d serve myself some figs and wash it down with honey. Oh the honey I can just feel it slipping down my throat. Then for dessert dates. Why am I torturing myself while all I can find here is country cabbage, and not even the good type. I can’t wait to reach home, to my larder and show my friend the luxuries he has been missing out on.

Oh my word, why are we using human path to walk. Don’t folks here have the technology to build tall houses and underground tunnels for us? I couldn’t imagine myself walking like this in town with all the traffic, the hustle and bustle. I wish there were tunnels here, travelling without stress, we could have passed by some underground fight club and see the rats fight each other. Anyway there’s nothing much going on here no wonder the humans let us travel on their path.

He just doesn’t know what’s in store for him, all the food he can eat, all the luxuries a mouse can ask for. If it was me I would not come back to live at this ragged place.

Oh there it is, skyscrapers over the horizon, heaven beckons.

  

Poetry

The City

The city rarely slumbers

The noises are never ending

People are at their numbers

When the chaos starts descending

Folks shuttling shoulder to shoulder

In the constant traffic rush

No one seems to bother

To just keep it shush

The larders are plenteous

The food is delicious

As tempting as it may be

It’s just too dangerous for me

It’s better to eat in the field

Roots of your own yield

Than to stay here concealed

With very little shield

My friend I don’t want to lie

I fear for my own

So I bid you goodbye

As I pack to go home.

Interview with the Country Mouse

Thank you for the interview Mr. Mouse, first I have to ask why Country Mouse?

Thank very much for hosting me, you people are always afraid of us. Well my name is quite obvious, I live in the countryside so I’m a county mouse.

Speaking of people is there a distinct difference between the people in the country and the ones you encountered in the town?

Oh yes there is a huge difference. The folks in the country tolerate us. Well actually they do more than just that, some treat us like family they are used to us. But the folks in the town are so cruelly, they are actually a threat to our survival.

Don’t you think it has something to do with the fact that you eat their foodstuff?

You see here is where the difference comes in. Us country mice rarely go to food stores of the country folks and steal their food. We go to the fields and look for roots and gather our own food. But the city mice go eat at the larders, that doesn’t please the humans much and hence the enmity.

And how did you find the city food?

Well I must admit, it was like nothing I’ve ever tasted before. But what’s the need to live on the edge like that, maybe mice in the city can manage but for me it’s a big no.

Do you think the city life affects the mortality rate of mice?

From the little I experienced I believe so.

Please elaborate.

Well I couldn’t survive there for a day. Living in such conditions is just a death wish. Apart from the hostile humans there is just too much noise and chaos, everything is always on the move. A mouse needs some peace and quiet.

So what is the ideal living conditions for a mouse?

Basically you look at two things safety and sustenance. It’s all about your life. Food keeps you going, you cannot leave where you cannot have a constant supply of food but then it doesn’t have to be luxurious foodstuff, especially not at the expense of you own life. You see my point, food should not draw you out so that the hostile humans kill you.

Are you not a risk taker Mr. Mouse?

Ha-ha city mice call us country ones yellow mice. They say we are cowards. It is true with great risks come great reward but I’d rather live long with my bantam sustenance.

You really are afraid to die aren’t you?

Who isn’t? And I hear these days the town fellows have devised ingenious means of killing us mice. They have these traps that act like metallic guards that imprison poor mice and torture them. And the worse ones are when they kill you without even being in the room. They put some poison in these delicious foods and you never eat again. Such perils cannot be found in the country.

So are you saying all mice should move to the country?

Well the country is awesome but it doesn’t mean its heaven, especially for those city jacks who are not used to it. For starters those foods they like are scarce here. Then there is the issue of natural predators like hawks and snake that ought to scare them away.

So you are afraid of city humans more than snakes?

Humans are unpredictable, they are intelligence and persistent. As for snakes you can easily know their M.O. Plus snakes only kill for food, there is plenty of that in the country. There are numerous times I’ve passed next to a snake and they just look at you, when they are full they are harmless. But as for human they’ll just kill you wherever they find you. Don’t our lives matter?

Give us your final remarks on this city and country life for mice.

First of all I want to say that no place is perfect for anyone. The city life has its pros and its cons the same with country life. What I can advise you to do is travel around and experience both living conditions and it is from that you can gauge which life suits you best.

If you like living on the edge and don’t mind all the noise then the city life is for you. The rewards are heavenly. But if you are like me and you prefer serenity and simple life then the countryside is what you will prefer.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you too.