Guess Who?

It's decidedly different here without him; there's an emptiness echoing through the place and it’s definitely quieter now he's taken himself off to the urban jungle in search of HER and the high life. London I think; Green Park won't have that much to offer in the way of greenery, not what he's used to anyway and I'm sure and he'll soon tire of all that city grime.

If you do see him and I can't be certain you'd even recognise him - he won't be wearing his usual clothing which would be described as pretty basic by your standards. He'll no doubt have to adopt a more conservative style in England. We don't wear clothes at all, we don't need to, but your virtually hairless bodies are so vulnerable, you have to cover up from head to toe to protect you from the elements. I've heard it’s cold and wet and the sun never shines in England... how dreadful! That'll take some getting used to. His normal attire wouldn't be at all suitable in that type of climate although it's practical here in his home environment. I hope he doesn't catch a cold. I don't know how he'll adapt. You see he's never lived anywhere else since he came here as a baby, but maybe he'll become a real swinger when it comes to city life too. People are adaptable they say. More adaptable than the rest of us. After all, you wouldn't take a polar bear and stick it in the Sahara, would you?

He always wore his hair long, cutting it himself when it became too unruly. But maybe he'll wear it short now for her sake although I suspect his wildness is part of the attraction.

Perhaps she doesn't wish to tame him - she'll want him to unleash that primitive streak in her. I saw it in her eyes; I remember the first time he took her in his muscular arms... she lost all her Victorian prudishness then. There was a new cry that day which was heard above the treetops. He was happy afterwards... happier than he'd ever been.

He's a lovely chap, tall, well-built, bronzed of course. He enjoyed the simple things in life. Everything he needed was here.

What more could anyone have wanted? There's always plenty of fruit and nuts readily available and he ate as well as the rest of us, strictly vegetarian of course, apart from a little fresh fish.

His days here were idyllic and filled with sunshine. He loved to swim in the pool and we would gather round and watch as he fished in shallow waters. His home was his gymnasium and he had to keep fit to survive. We all learned to respect him over the years. He was the only one of your kind who ever tried to communicate with us. We associate your kind with the sound of a gun but not him; he respected our ways and never tried to distort the laws of nature like the rest of you.

I hope he hasn't deserted us for good. Everything was all right until SHE came and when she left, he grew increasingly restless and discontent. He left everything just for HER.

It had to happen eventually that he'd find one of his own to love. During his adolescence, he'd spend more and more time staring at his reflection in the pool by the waterfall with a distant longing in his eye. Loneliness, I guess. So when she arrived he was overjoyed, it was love at first sight. Man and his mate... why should he be any different from the rest of us? You can't blame him for wanting what the rest of us take for granted.

She didn't settle in very well here although he did try to show her the ropes, so he had no choice but to follow when she went.

Each day when we heard his familiar cry we felt there was a certain order to our lives, an improvement on what we'd had before. But others will come now and we know they won't be like him. Perhaps he'll return to protect us but your ways will win eventually and our home will grow smaller. Your kind will erode it away and in a few of your generations it will be gone, one of your cities in its place.

But I do hope he's only away temporarily; things will never be the same without him. If you see him, tell him we all miss him won't you?

Look! There's a ship approaching on the horizon. It's anchoring in the bay. We monkeys are excited. He is there with her, waving to us from the decks and by his side is a small child. This is a story with a happy ending after all.