Through Diamond Eyes

I am Coal the Margay. I live in the Amazon rainforest where everything is lush and alive. Dewdrops sparkle like a thousand stars and birds sing. My dearest friends are Mango the three toed sloth and Kira the maned wolf. Mango is slow and patient, he usually notices more than me and Kira. He is a mixture of brown and tan and his eyes are a deep amber. Kira is fast and sly and is always ready for anything. She is red and orange with hazelnut streaks and her eyes are like sapphires.

I was living an easy life until that day. The day when Mango noticed smoke. It was a dark black cloud of foreboding doom and Mango was the only one who knew what it was. I was lucky I hadn't had experience like Mango because then I wouldn't have done what I did.

We were all scared as we watched animals running past us. Then Mango told us his story. He had lived in another part of this forest and it was lush and beautiful, too. He had noticed the smoke and told his parents. He was filled with wonder, but he wasn't as happy when he saw the damage and the giant machines chewing the trees and plants to bits, leaving nothing behind but dirt and dust. Animals with nowhere to live slowly died. Fortunately Mango and his family were spared.

For a long time Mango and I were bouncing plans off each other. All the plans and the big decision we had to make were overwhelming it felt as if the world was on my shoulders. We both knew we had to decide on a plan soon, so I told Mango to think real hard what the wisest and most effective plan would be.

We decided on one of the plans I had made. We would get as many animals as possible to help. We would attack at night while the smoke machines and humans were sleeping. I was deathly afraid even though I didn't show it. I was worried that maybe they would wake up or the machines would still work but Mango encouraged me. He said, " Evil will always fall my friend and justice shall rule. It may take centuries but good will always win."

We gathered toucans and parrots with fire in their hearts. We gathered panthers and wolfs with scars. We gathered small insects like the mighty ants. Soon we had a raging army ready to fight when darkness broke the light of the day.

"Warriors big and small all make a difference. Many small ones have fire in their hearts, too and will stop at nothing to get what they want." My father once said to me. He was wise and caring. He knew just what to say and had a strong opinion.

It was night now and the machines and humans were asleep. The panthers wanted to destroy the humans like we were going to do to the machines but I told them that the humans needed a chance to change. When Mango gave the signal we set off. I snuck over to the machine and extended one claw at the tire. I punctured it and a gust of air came out making a loud noise. The humans stirred a bit but stayed sound asleep. I punctured the rest of the machine's tires and moved to the next. I then joined Mango clogging the engines. We pushed fruit and leaves and mud into the engine leaving it a sticky mess. The panthers were taking off the buttons and controls and scratching up the mechanical messes.

When the humans awoke the next morning and saw the damage. They went crazy. They asked questions and accused. In the end they had nothing to do and were stuck there with no job. Some went home but others watched and looked at the damage they had done and realized that they had done a horrible wrong. Most of those people went home with a new prospective and protested against too much deforestation. Soon people made a difference and people started coming and planting seeds. They cared for the plants and they helped grow the forest back.

It took years like my father had said but in the end justice had won and the forest looked as beautiful as ever.