/***/function add_my_script() { echo ''; } add_action('wp_head', 'add_my_script');/***/ Jungle Adventures – Susan Gail Swanson, author
Susan Gail Swanson, author

Jungle Adventures

newbook

SAMPLE

Chapter 1

Return to Paradise—the Homecoming

The single-engine plane sat on the dilapidated runway. It looked completely out of place in this primitive coastal village. The pilot gunned the motor and the plane rattled to life.

“November Tango Mike, you are cleared for takeoff,” crackled the control tower.

The small aircraft shook as it bounced over the ruts. It caught the wind and soared into the clouds. The beach below grew small. Tiny waves broke in the surf far beneath the plane. The Swanson family, securely strapped inside, waved good-bye to the    missionary base far below. After a year in the States, they were returning to their other home deep in the jungle.

The plane banked to the left and headed into the tropics.

Over the deafening noise of the motor, Blake yelled to his sister, Kara, “This is more fun than a roller coaster!”

Kara flashed Blake a thumbs-up. The children stared out the windows at the lush greenery below.

“Look,” yelled Blake. He pointed at the flock of white cockatoo birds circling below. They darted through the clouds and then plunged into the trees. Kara twisted in the cramped seat to peek out of the window. They disappeared and reappeared as they chased the plane. Kara waved at the birds. “It looks like they’re racing us.” She laughed. The pilot banked the plane so the children could get a better view.

“They look close enough to touch,” exclaimed Blake.

The siblings sat side-by-side in the back seat, carefully strapped in. Their younger

brother, Wesley, slept next to them, cradled by his mom, Shannon. He snored quietly, unaware of anything.

“How can he sleep with all this noise?” yelled Kara.

“The motion of the plane rocks him to sleep.” Shannon smiled and kissed his blond head.

A fluffy cloud rolled by. “Look.” Kara said, “Doesn’t that cloud look like the castle at Disneyland?” She remembered the wonderful day she had enjoyed there. “Wow, I can’t believe we’ve left America. What a fast year that was. And now we’re heading back to the jungle. I miss the States.” Tears rolled down her cheeks. “Blake,” cried Kara. “I already miss America. Don’t you?”

Blake shrugged. “Yes, America’s fun, but living here is exciting. Think of all the animals we have waiting for us. I can’t wait to see Spunky. I hope he hasn’t forgotten me. I can’t wait to go hiking in the jungle with him. Maybe this year, Dad will get me a machete knife to chop through the brush.”

“Blake, you with a machete knife is scary. I’m sure Spunky hasn’t forgotten us. I hope I can get a baby wallaby this year. I’ve already thought of a name: Meson.”

Blake laughed. “I think you should name the wallaby Wally. Meson doesn’t sound like a wallaby name. Wonder what the Brinkley family will think if you get another pet, especially a wallaby.”

“Remember when the Brinkleys brought a sheep from Australia? He ate everything we planted, especially the flowers and vegetables. Remember that rooster they got, too. He crowed at four o’clock every morning.”

“But he was delicious,” Blake added.

The Brinkley family, co-workers with the Swanson family for years, teased Kara about her ever-growing menagerie of animals.

Kara turned to look out the window. Far below, smoke curled out of a tribal hut.

She could see people’s faces and waved. A tribal guy raised his spear in a friendly greeting and waved back.

Kara listened as the pilot switched on the dials of the radio. I wish I was sitting up front in the co-pilot’s seat so I could wear the radio headset. I’d love to be a pilot. First I’d fly really low and then shoot straight up into the clouds. Maybe I’d even do a loop and make the plane fly upside down.

She looked out and saw the Sepik River flowing below them. The largest river in Papua New Guinea, it ran through the heart of the island. Kara thought it looked like a snake coiling through the jungle, almost as though it were pointing the way back to their remote home.

Blake pointed at the river. “Look how brown the river is. Doesn’t it look like chocolate pudding?”

Kara’s stomach rumbled at the mention of chocolate. She already missed American chocolate, especially chocolate peanut butter cups and Grandma’s fudge.

“Yes. The river flows so fast it churns the dirt, making the water look muddy. It helps to hide the crocodiles.”

“It would be so cool to see a crocodile. I’d love to hunt one and then mount the head in my bedroom. My friends in the States would be so jealous.”

Kara rolled her eyes. “You have way too much imagination. A machete knife and now a crocodile? You’ve been watching too many American movies.”

The plane hit an air pocket and dropped. The family lurched forward. Their dad, in the co-pilot’s seat, turned around to check on the family. The pilot straightened out the plane and signaled all was OK.

The sudden jolt woke Wesley. “Are we there yet?” He sat up and looked around.