The Adventure of "Jako" The Florida Troll

Jako lay restlessly in his hammock gazing up at the clear blue sky that covered the vast Everglade swamps of Southern Florida. He had worked very hard since sunrise gathering the seashells that the clan collected to make medicine and provide shelter for the smaller species of wildlife who were among the many tired and injured creatures they cared for at the camp. His basket had been very heavy for he had been fortunate to find some of the larger conch shells that were so highly prized by his clan. Now it was midday and rest time for all the Trolls. Jako was glad he had built his hammock away from the others so he could lay still and contemplate all that had happened in recent months.

For thousands of years these Trolls had lived in the dense wilderness enjoying the seclusion and peacefulness of the Everglades undetected by Mankind.

They had evolved so long ago from their ancient ancestors, the dinosaur, the alligator and a little touch of flamingo and had made it their lifes-work to be the caretakers of nature in the swamps. The fall of the year was the busiest time for the clan of Trolls. All the migrating birds from the North would stop by the camp for food and rest and many had sustained injuries along the way which required immediate attention. Therefore it was necessary to work very hard all through the year to gather the provisions they would need for their visiting friends and build shelter for the sick and injured.

Jako was the best of the gatherers in the clan. He was very brave but also a little reckless and had more than once ventured beyond the limits of the swamp onto the edge of the Development. The Elder, who always wore an old straw hat and an old pair of glasses, had warned him again and again about the dangers of such adventure and he had been reprimanded severely for this activity. But curiosity overcame Jako and he continued to go further and further each time. Sometimes he would share his adventures with his best friend, Molly, who always wore a ribbon in her hair and spent most of her time gathering flowers. Jako would sit with Molly during the rest time and tell her of the strange things he had seen at the Development site. He spoke of the big machine that moved mountains of earth with one scoop of its giant arm and could probably pick up the
whole camp if it ever reached them. He told her of the huge tubes that sucked the water from the ground spraying it over the strange plants and trees that Mankind had planted in straight rows across the cleared flatlands. The plants grew tall and on one occasion he had climbed high into a big live oak tree and hid himself among the Spanish moss that hung from its branches. He
had watched as Mankind harvested the fruits of these plants. They placed them in huge metal baskets and drove away with them in gigantic machines with wheels that pushed them forward and made a terrible noise.

Although Molly was very frightened by the stories Jako told her she loved to hear of his adventures and believed him to be the most daring and brave Troll in the whole clan. "The Elder would be very angry," she told him. "He has warned us of the dangers of Mankind and the harm they could bring us. If he discovers that you are going beyond the limits of the swamp he will restrict you to the camp and you will no longer be the best gatherer of all." "I know," Jako would reply, "But I can not seem to help myself." Thus Jako continued to take chances and each time he reached the edge of the swamp he would venture a step or two further into the Development.


On this particular day Jako was not thinking of his adventures to the Development or of his fondness for Molly. Today he was thinking of what the Elder had told them last night at the Great Meeting of the Clan. These Great Meetings only occurred once every hundred or so years and only when the survival of the clan was at risk. All the Trolls in the Everglades were assembled together to be informed by the Elder of the danger that existed and to discuss all the possible ways to avoid the extinction of the clan. It was a very exciting time for a young Troll like Jako. He had only experienced one other Great Meeting in his one-hundred and seventy-four years. That was on the occasion of the great tidal wave that had nearly caused the whole of the Everglades to be submerged beneath the ocean. The clan had survived that disaster and for many decades their lives had been peaceful and productive. Only now had the Elder called a Great Meeting to warn of the Development and the ever increasing encroachment of Mankind.