The Creature

By Guy Morad

Translated from Hebrew by Riva Hocherman

Guy Morad's graphic tale reveals the vulnerability of a lethal infiltrator.

December 29, 2006

Published in Reading Right To Left: New Hebrew Writing From Israel

Israel

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On the news they said that a creature had fallen to earth from the sky . They said it was very dangerous . If anyone found the creature they should be extremely careful and let the army know right away so the army could come and get it .

I found it.

It fell in the field next to my house .

At first I was afraid to get too close.

But after I saw that it wasn't moving , I picked up a branch from the ground and began to touch it .

Its head was covered in blood . It was dead .

I felt kind of sorry for it and didn't know what to do .

If Eli was here , he'd have known what to do .

Eli's my big brother . He died in the army .

When Eli died I cried all the time and couldn't stop thinking about him .

Everyone told me he'd died for his country , and that the army had taken him because he was a hero .

I decided not to tell anyone about my creature . I dug a hole deep in the grove behind my house and buried him inside .

I won't let them take him , the way they took Eli .