my bat story.

Our last night in the Congo we slept at the mission in Banda. The sleeping arrangements looked similar to the last couple nights...a foam mattress, clean sheets, mosquito net - tucked in nice and tight to keep out any scary things outside of the net from coming in. The generator goes off just before we get into bed. I score my net with the flashlight to make one last check for mosquitoes or snakes or possibly a rat. My mind is of course racing; yet the bed is empty. So I thought...

I tuck my net in tight. As does Bethany. We settle under the light of our headlamps to read, journal and try to calm any ridiculous fear we may have of actually falling asleep atop the hill in Banda where the LRA have been known to appear. Oh the drama, you say. Just wait. I have to use the facility. I coax Bethany to come with me as its quite dark and I'm a chicken. I open our bedroom door and in the main room are bats. Lots of bats. Flying low and fast in circles. Attracted to my headlamp, btw, flying towards me. I close the door. Nope, just kidding.

I tuck my net in tight - again. So many unfamiliar sounds outside. The moonlight streams in through the cracks of the boarded windows. I plug in my headphones and will for sleep to come. Without notice, a loud steady beeping noise goes off in the other room. It sounds like a walkie-talkie or moris code. I would have guessed it to be a dying battery. But earlier that day, our director tells us how the soldiers keeping watch outside send a signal when LRA are approaching...

Jim's snoring stops and I hear him go to the beeping noise. It too stops. And thankfully, I was right. Just the radio battery dying.

I awake in the middle of the night to something hitting my head! A wing! Shoot!! A bat found its way into our room. I move closer to the center of the bed, logically thinking if I'm away from the net, it won't hit me and I can just go back to sleep. I turn to my side. Swoop! Another wing hits me in the face! This is not fun. I sit up and get smacked back and forth from a flying bat!! I'm wailing at it in the dark with my arms. I want it gone. But I don't want to turn on my light as it may attack me. And even if I am told they are "probably" harmless, many bats in Africa carry deadly diseases. "Yes, nurse in Menomonie, I need my rabies shots!" It continues to fly atop my bed and swooping down. I curl into a ball in the middle of the bed, pulling the sheet over my head. A flashing light begins at the head of the bed - my headlamp batteries are dying. The bat goes towards the light. Desperate for some sleep, I decide to turn on a light, get out of bed and chase the dirty thing out of the room. As I sit up and get whacked again with a wing, I hear chewing and scattering under my bed, between Bethany and I's beds. There is a rat or something akeen to a rat in our room. I'm not leaving my tightly tucked net. I try to wake Bethany - remembering she is my fearless hero and will hopefully rid these creatures from our night. She tells me to put my headphones back in and go to sleep. Gee, thanks.

Dawn finally filters through the cracks and the flying, flapping, smacking bat wings are still. Ahh...now can I sleep? Why no, we are staying on a military base and the drill sergeant is waking all the soldiers - at the crack of dawn. The marching and singing begin. I hear the boys get up and make coffee. I decided I've had enough. Today we travel onward. As Bethany and I get up to start our day, I take a look around.

I found the bat in our room.

It is tucked neatly up INSIDE MY NET!!!

Take a look...