REPTILES

Since my boyhood years I have been hearing and reading about reptiles. My earliest recollection are the words of my deceased grandmother. Who would talk frequently about the lizard that she saw in her ceiling positioning himself to leap into her bosom while she was lying in bed. I couldn’t have been more that six years old at the time. But even from that period of my early development my subconscious was being conditioned with a grim fear of lizards. I distinctly remember while living in Jamaica that one of our neighbors came over to the property and asked me to climb a certain tree to pick some guineps for her. I quickly obliged. But after acquiring a few bunches and throwing them down to her. I saw a large green lizard (Anolis carolinensis), climbing the tree and coming in my direction. I was terrified. Especially after I witnessed what appeared to be a saw being raised in his back. I was able to descend that tree by one of the limbs and I would not ascend it again. Despite the many pleadings of my neighbor.

“The Jamaican green lizard is also called the green anole, Jamaican giant anole (Anolis garmani), and the Jamaican crested anole. It is found mostly in the West Indies and will eat insects and other small lizards, as well as some vegetal matter. A few Jamaicans believe that green lizards are actually duppies (i.e. ghosts or spirits of dead persons). These spirits take the form of green lizards and will do harm to anyone that interferes with them. It is said that persons should therefore not throw stones at these lizards, since doing so may result in serious illness and even death.” (Jamaica, A Paradise Island In The Sun, October 9, 2018)

Fast forward approximately two decades and I was living in Saint Thomas, Jamaica, West Indies. I walked into my kitchen on two different occasions and there was a large seven inch, four legged intruder, with a long tail, on my kitchen counter top. It was another green lizard. During both transpiring events, he quickly retraced his steps and bolted through the same window that he had used to effect the unwelcome incursion. Presumably, he was looking for food. My landlord’s grandson who was about ten years old at the time came to the property periodically. During such visits he would spend his time chasing and catching the large colorful ground lizards (Iguanas), in order to get a close up look at them. I often wondered how he did it.

“Jamaican iguanas are darkly colored reptiles with scaly skin, long tails, and triangular stripes running along the length of their spines. Their scale color can range from gray to blue and green. The iguanas are the largest animals native to Jamaica.” (National Geographic, Iguanas).

While living in Fairy Hill, Portland, Jamaica. I came upon a Croaking Lizard in one of my drawers when trying to retrieve some underwear. He skillfully hid himself. Insomuch that I was unable to find him. Even though I searched for him tenaciously. I remained at that location for three years. A friend from Seaforth, Saint Thomas, would visit me periodically. He always complained that whenever he used the bathroom on the other side of the apartment. Someone would pass him at the door and “suck his teeth,” as if he had been irritated. Although I had no such overt paranormal experiences of my own while living there. I knew that the house was haunted. Because other people who visited with me at that same address made similar complaints. Furthermore, my own daughter became severely ill as an infant while we were living there and was subsequently hospitalized at The Port Antonio Hospital for one week. I spent some time in the Villa Kerry Anna. Located on a hill in the Iron Shore Estate. Overlooking The Caribbean Sea in Montego Bay. There were many Croaking Lizards in that mansion. All of them however confined themselves to the very high wooden ceiling. They announced their presence by croaking loudly at night and occasionally you would catch a glimpse of them as they moved noiselessly around, over the surface of the groove and tongue.

“This gilt-eye interloper is Aristelliger praesignis, otherwise known as the Jamaican Croaking Lizard. Croakers are insectivores, which doesn’t explain why this one wound up in my glass. After I extracted my pound of flesh in the form of a few images, I set it free. Rumor has it that croakers are extremely unwelcome in Jamaican homes but I didn’t observe any untoward animosity towards these or any other lizards during my stay.” (10,000 Birds, Jamaican Croaking Lizard, November 17 2009).

Most of these experiences were disconcerting. Especially when I recall that in scripture, Satan is described as a reptile.

“And the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” So the Lord God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this,
You are cursed more than all cattle, And more than every beast of the field; On your belly you shall go, And you shall eat dust All the days of your life. And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.” (Genesis 3: 14-15. NKJV)

According to many prominent theologians. The woman represents the church. The seed of the woman is Christ. The bruising of the heel of the seed is Christ’s vicarious death upon Calvary’s tree. For the benefit of the human race. The bruising of the serpent’s head is Satan’s final destruction in the lake of fire. Not only for his own sins. But also for all the sins that he seduced the people of God into committing. Because all the sins of the redeemed will be blotted out of the heavenly books of record and confessed upon the head of Lucifer the great Scapegoat.

“And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place, the tabernacle of meeting, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat. Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, confess over it all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, concerning all their sins, putting them on the head of the goat, and shall send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a suitable man. The goat shall bear on itself all their iniquities to an uninhabited land; and he shall release the goat in the wilderness.” Leviticus 16:20-22.

This uninhabited land is the desolate earth during the one thousand years of Satan’s imprisonment. He will be confined to planet earth. Over the surface of which he will roam relentlessly for one millennium as he awaits and contemplates his doom. No one will be alive here at that time. Because all the wicked will be dead and in their graves and all the righteous will be in heaven. The only living beings here at that time will be the devil and his angels.  

“Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them.”

I looked very carefully at my present apartment before I moved in. Especially since I’m now living in Ghana. Since I’ve had some previous negative experiences. But in spite all of the checking and repairs. I discovered shortly after moving in, that this apartment, because it had been empty for five years. Was the habitat for many lizards. Consequent upon the poorly installed windows and because there were no people living here. The lizards were everywhere, in my bedroom, kitchen, pantry, hall and dining room.

“A lot of us are busy analysing how Corona virus is deadly and all that, not knowing there is another common creation of God in some of our homes that are more dangerous to our existence. I implore you to take a little time out and read this, it may be useful to you, I mean you reading this right now. The slippery House Lizard known as Wall Gecko also called ”Efie Wura” in Akan fell into a pot of soup prepared by a housewife in Nigeria unknowingly and it killed the woman and her 5 children after eating. Another woman who prepared Tea in a kettle which the gecko fell into, all the family that drank the tea died. Please ensure your food, cooked or raw is tightly closed as this animal is highly poisonous. Therefore do everything possible to get rid of this dangerous animal from your home.” (The Independent Ghana, The Secret Behind Wall Gekco You Should Avoid Before It Kills You, March 13, 2020).

I just learned this valuable piece of TRUTH recently. But since I spent some time in Jamaica as a child and was exposed to a great deal of Jamaican folklore and culture. I was raised with a fear of all lizards. After moving into my present apartment. Some of my friends advised me that these lizards were harmless, but I chose not to take any chances. I started killing them at every opportunity that presented itself. I soon discovered that one of them was living right behind my glass sliding door. At the entrance. Whenever I came home and slid the door open he would attempt to race me into my living room. However, he hid himself beneath the couch. This was far too much for me. The second time this phenomenon occurred, I located my brambled broom and put that poisonous Gecko out of his misery. A few times after opening my bathroom door I either saw one behind the door or in my shower tub. The procedure was repeated until they finally got the message. A few times I ran into one of them on my kitchen wall or on the floor. Of course they did their best to escape. But that’s almost impossible when someone is raining blows down upon you with a brambled broom.

My sisters warned me that all of these lizards might be duppies (spirits). After trying to take one of them out with a mop because he was loitering at the entrance to my bedroom. But fell instead, and struck my head at the time, on one of the concrete columns. I was tempted to believe her. But I sustained no injury and thereafter I continued my relentless efforts to dispossess them and eradicate them completely from my living quarters. Thank God apparently I’ve succeeded. Not only are they now staying out of my area. But whenever they see me they run for their lives.