Upon exiting my tent at 6:00 a.m. sharp, I saw that things had already begun to liven up in the village. Some trucks had arrived carrying medical and building supplies, and Jack was rushing around setting up the clinic tent where he would treat as many people as he could. Some people would walk miles to receive the medical attention they so desperately needed. A local woman would be assisting him as a nurse. Villagers and other people from surrounding areas would help with the building of the wells and restoration of some of the villagers’ homes. I saw Dr. Berard and Dr. Kim with their clipboards, making notes, planning a whirlwind of construction that would bring fresh water and any number of improvements to the lives of these impoverished people. Cora was preparing coffee over a small fire outside our tent, and I was grateful. I felt the longing in my legs to go on a run, but knew it would be at least a week before I could indulge in that again. While savoring the dark roast, I scrubbed my face with a cloth and applied some sunscreen. The sun was already bright and beating down on us, stirring up the dusty earth. I put my glasses on, knowing I’d be more comfortable even though it would make me look like a complete nerd. I kept my head down so Jack wouldn’t notice my bedraggled appearance, but he had seen me and was waving and smiling in my direction. I smiled and waved back. I’d have very little chance to talk to him once he started treating people.
Cora interrupted my brief distraction with Jack and asked with a smirk on her face, “So when are you two going to finally hook up? It’s been obvious for years that you guys like each other.”
I blushed, embarrassed that a colleague had noticed something so personal about me. But she seemed amused, and I shook my head. “I doubt we’ll ever go beyond being just friends. Anyway, it’s not like we ever have the opportunity to pursue anything else….”
She snorted a laugh. “If that’s your excuse, then why not just blame the whole world that’s falling apart as the reason you can’t hook up with a hot, brilliant guy? You gotta live at some point, Mina.”
She was right. I would let her win this argument. “Thanks for reminding me I’m a scaredy cat and a slacker in my personal life.”
Her grin widened. “Are you going to hang out with all of us in Lagos after we’re done here? Perfect opportunity to spend time with him.”
I nodded. “Yeah, he invited me.”
She squinted up at the sun. “Come on lover-girl. We gotta make it to the National Forest as soon as possible. And remember, we may encounter poachers.”
We made our way to a small truck that had arrived with the only supplies we’d be using: a big bag of figs. The chimps relied on figs as a staple of their diets, and we knew they would be in short supply, if not completely eradicated. It was our “bait.” What would normally take months and months to accomplish we had to do in a week. If we found any chimps in what remained of the Oban National Park, we’d have to establish contact as quickly as possible. Developing a trusting relationship with a wild primate was usually a painstaking process. We didn’t have that time. I hauled the bag over my shoulder, and Cora carried the pack with water and food for us. We couldn’t carry much, as we had to be able to move quickly and quietly at any moment. The poachers in this region wouldn’t hesitate to kill us if they found us attempting a rescue.
Cora and I walked in silence for a while. I was enjoying the stretch of my legs, but Cora was panting a bit and casting dirty looks in my direction. I slowed my pace slightly so she could keep up. The sun was hot and the air was dry, but soon we started to see more foliage and trees that got thicker with vegetation. After about three miles, we were in as dense a forest as we’d find anywhere in Nigeria, or maybe the whole of Africa. I began seeing some birds flying above us, and heard the chirp of insects. It certainly wasn’t the cacophony of sound that rain forests in years long past would have produced, but there was some life here. The air became cooler as the leaves above us sheltered us from the sweltering sun. We began to walk more slowly, keeping our eyes peeled for signs of chimpanzees or poachers. We knelt in the dirt at regular intervals, combing the moist earth for signs of the elusive primates. Finally finding spoor, Cora motioned me toward a clearing, where we could sit and camp out while we waited. She took the bag of figs and placed a pile about 200 yards from where we’d be crouching. There wasn’t much else we could do at that point, except hope the figs proved irresistible. We wouldn’t speak, but instead watch silently through binoculars and hope.
As it turned out, we didn’t have to wait long. Cora grabbed my arm and directed my gaze to a rustling bush not far from the pile of figs. From beneath the brush emerged a female chimp with, to our surprise, a baby clinging to her back. Cora and I looked at each other with wide eyes. If there was a mother and child, there might be a small community nearby. The female looked emaciated, but her baby, which was probably about two years old, seemed better fed. The mother moved wearily toward the mound of figs. She may have been too hungry to notice the humans sitting not far from the food source. Cora and I remained frozen in our places, and watched as the mother sniffed a fig she had pulled from the pile. The baby climbed off her back to investigate the fruit but the mother held her baby back while she sampled it first. Deciding it was safe, she allowed the youngster to start eating, both sitting down next to the figs. Her gaze had grown more vigilant while they ate, and her eyes rested on Cora and me a number of times, but she made no sound or movement to indicate we were unwelcome.
The baby was a little boy, and although not nearly as rambunctious as toddler chimps who live in safe habitats, he still exhibited enough energy that we could surmise he was healthy. The mother was about twenty years old, but her hunger made her appear older and wiser than her years. A noticeable limp in her gait implied an old injury in one of her long arms. As I always did, I mentally named the animals we were charged with caring for. The mother would be Lulu. The baby, I thought, should be called Jack. I smiled, wondering how the human Jack would respond to my naming the chimp youngster after him. Cora and I continued to sit in silence while the mother and child finished the figs slowly, savoring the fruit. The youngster wanted to play with his mother, but she had grown increasingly wary of us, emitting quiet pant-hoots of warning. Eventually she put her child on her back and ambled through the brush out of our view, and it was only then that we let out a shared breath of relief. This had gone incredibly well. It didn’t appear that she was part of a larger community with any dominant males. That would have made this first interaction much more difficult. Sadly though, it would mean our rescue efforts wouldn’t be as fruitful. But we had learned long ago to be happy with any small triumph. Cora flicked her damp fringe to the side and whispered that we should look around just to be sure there were no others, and we spent several hours moving through the brush, our ears peeled for the sounds of people. There were no signs of poachers, but they could be on the same trail that we were. We concluded that these were the only chimps surviving, and decided to head back to camp. I walked more slowly on the roads back, and Cora seemed thankful. I noticed my skin wasn’t as pink and was settling into a nice brown. I looked forward to seeing what had been accomplished in the camp while we had been gone. I wasn’t disappointed: when we arrived I saw organized activity. An influx of local people had shown up for medical treatment, or out of curiosity. I heard hammers and saws and spotted Dr. Kim overseeing construction on a number of projects. Dr. Pashtar was in the medical tent schooling the young nurse assisting Jack. She looked terrified of him but also weary. Jack was holding an infant and talking to a young mother and father. He’d be educating them in the kind way he had with all people—another attribute I greatly admired. He gave a quick wave when he saw Cora and me make our way to a table that had been set up with food and water. Cora snickered and nudged me. She was really enjoying this flirtation. While her interest in my love life was annoying at times, it also reinforced the flimsy hope within me that there might be a chance with Jack. Turning my attention back to the table, I was thankful for what appeared to be a bounty of rice, pounded yam, and some meat. The village people had welcomed us with kindness, despite their illnesses and poverty. I dug into the food and was shoveling it down when Dr. Pashtar made his way over and began grilling Cora and me about what we had accomplished that day. I felt confident as I told him the success we’d had with the chimps.
“But you didn’t find anything else?” he queried, and I felt my hackles rise in defiance.
“We certainly made significant inroads with these chimps. We’ll continue to search for any others,” Cora interjected.
“And poachers? Any sign?”
I shook my head. “No sign yet, but we’ll remain vigilant.”
He nodded once, and stalked off.
“That man needs an enema,” Cora muttered, and I burst out laughing. She had a sense of humor when she chose to. We didn’t want to be done for the day, and so I made my way around the camp looking for anywhere I could be useful. I saw that the clinic was pretty busy, and Jack and the young nurse seemed a bit overwhelmed, so with my confidence bolstered by today’s success, I asked Jack what I could do to help.
“Mina, thank God,” he said. “There’s an elderly woman brought here by her family who is refusing treatment. She claims she will only see her village’s witch doctor. You can try talking her into letting me examine her.”
He gave me that knee-weakening grin, and I didn’t have the heart to tell him I was horrible at convincing people of anything, much less anyone who was superstitious and disbelieving of modern medicine. Instead I smiled in return and replied, “I’ll give it my best shot.”
I found the woman sitting beside a white-sheeted bed, with her family nearby. Her creased face conveyed to me the displeasure she felt in being here, but I could see that she was in dire need of medical attention. Her son smiled at me, and speaking in good English said, “Miss Doctor, please help my mother. I will show her it is safe to see a doctor here, you will examine me and my sister, yes? And she will see there is no bad here.”
I had only had a few human anatomy classes in college but didn’t want to show them that I didn’t really know what I was doing. I smiled at the old woman, showed her a stethoscope, and decided I could at least take the vitals of her children. The son spoke to his mother in a tribal tongue, and, while I couldn’t understand the words, I got the gist of it. She replied in a desultory tone. I could tell she didn’t approve of her son speaking to me or letting me touch him. The daughter was smiling at me as if she found all this somewhat amusing. I proceeded to listen to their hearts and lungs, and kept the tone of my voice positive and soothing. The old woman watched with suspicion but also with what I hoped was increasing curiosity. The daughter spoke to her in a cajoling voice and kept pointing at me, and over at Jack. I had an idea. This woman was a mother, maybe I could try to relate to her on that level.
“Will you translate for me?” I asked the son.
He smiled and nodded. I sat on my haunches in front of the woman and looked at her lined but regal face. Her eyes were frightened but wise. “Today, I went into the forest and found a mother and her child. A chimp mother and her child.”
The son translated my words. This seemed to interest the old woman.
“I think maybe the mother was afraid of us but she knew we were there to help her and her baby. I think maybe she knows that’s all we want to do, to help. And since she loves her baby so much, I think she’ll let us.”
The son translated this and the old woman began to smile. She reached out and grasped my hand and spoke directly to me. The son translated. “She says it has been many years since we’ve seen any of our chimp brothers and sisters. If you are here to help them, then you can help her too.”
I grinned my relief at the family. She would let Jack examine and treat her, and I felt much better about my abilities as a negotiator. The young nurse, who had been listening to our exchange, smiled at me gratefully. I got up to let them usher the woman to a bed, and Jack took a moment to come over and talk to me, to thank me for convincing the old woman to allow for an examination. I was basking in the glow of his praise. He tugged my dusty braid before returning his attention to the next patient, and the casual touch was enough to send my heart soaring.
When the sun began to set, we sat around in a circle again to regale one another with what we had accomplished that day. Some of the local people had stayed to continue visiting with us, and we were also grateful for their company. They were a happy people, despite all the hardship they faced daily. Another thermos of alcohol was passed around, and we all were much more positive than we had been the night before. I found myself sitting next to Jack, allowing a local woman to braid my hair into tiny plaits. His warm gaze was appreciative. I saw Cora smiling at me from across the campfire and knew she was thoroughly enjoying the little romance that was playing out before her.
The next morning she and I left the already busy camp for the forest. She seemed more optimistic, and we discussed our strategy for the day ahead. “I’m thinking we need to speed up the process.” Cora said.
Though she had that bossy tone I usually bristled at, I agreed. “It doesn’t seem like we should waste any time trying to habituate them further.” I’d have to try and force my mind to do that clicking trick where I’d directly communicate our intentions to the beleaguered Lulu, and hope she was able to discern my feelings of protective concern.
We found where we had sat and waited the day before and quietly put out the pile of figs, then positioned ourselves in plain view of the mound. We’d stay quiet until the mother appeared again, but we wouldn’t try to communicate with her yet. Instead we’d sit and mock groom each other to show her and her baby that we were harmless white and hairless chimps. Almost to the minute as on the day before, the mother warily exited the brush with her baby on her back and stopped when she saw us sitting near the figs. I wondered where she and her baby had slept; chimps usually create arboreal nests at night. We held our breath again but remained casual in body language. Cora was sitting behind me and began combing through my braids. I kept my eyes on the stick I was pretending to use as a tool for fishing for termites. We heard the youngster quietly hoot a few times, but the mother remained silent. I remembered I had named her Lulu, and I silently willed her to feel safe enough to approach the fig pile. Baby Jack was feeling frisky and was pulling at his mother’s arm, wanting to eat and explore the strange humans sitting nearby. She was deciding whether we were a threat or not. These moments were crucial to our mission. We wouldn’t have another chance if she decided we posed a danger to her and her child. After what seemed an interminable length of time, she let her baby approach the pile of fruit, but she kept her eyes on us at all times. He happily began to eat, but she didn’t attempt to eat along with him just yet. I was not surprised at her inherent mothering abilities. I had seen it over and over in any number of primate species. In their faces, I saw everything human but without façade. I noted the same intelligence and propensity for compassion and bonding that humans prided themselves on but so often failed to exhibit. Sensing an opportunity, I caught Lulu’s sad, deep brown eyes and focused on transmitting my hopes and fears for her and her baby. Her gaze was intent on mine, and I felt my mind begin to meld with hers. I didn’t sense any response from her, though, and I had to hope I was successful in my clumsy attempt.
The little one was beginning to get antsy after his big meal, his second in as many days. He wanted his mother to engage him in play, and, while her eyes remained on us, she began to vocalize back to her baby. She allowed herself to eat a little too. Cora and I still hadn’t moved from our grooming positions but this was better than we could have hoped for. Not wanting to push our luck, we didn’t vocalize back just yet. Baby Jack was showing more and more interest in us, inching closer and closer before his mother drew him back to her side. The pile of fruit was almost gone, and eventually Lulu decided enough time had been spent feeding herself and her child. She urged Jack to follow her out of the clearing, but she cast a knowing look at us over her shoulder before disappearing into the brush. Maybe she had picked up on my heartfelt message. I could only hope.
We spent the next several hours combing through the forest for other signs of life, as we had done the day before, but again it was fruitless. Suddenly, Cora stopped in her tracks, motioning me to be silent. We heard men’s voices in the distance, hard and raucous. We crouched low and stayed motionless. They were far enough away, and hadn’t heard us. Cora’s face reflected my own anxiety. If they were poachers, then they were on the trail of the chimps too. This would mean we’d have to rush our work even more. The two chimps’ lives depended on us. As the voices receded into the distance, Cora whispered, “We should make our way back to camp. Shit, this isn’t good.” Her forehead was beaded with sweat, and I distractedly wiped the moisture away from my own brow. She was right. The stakes were higher now.