The Little Rubber Man

Once, a long time ago, a little girl, of the ancient Olmec civilisation went into the forest and she saw a rubber tree out of which sap was flowing and, collecting the sap, she made a little rubber man out of it and the rubber man came to life; bouncing around just like a rubber ball.

And when she saw the rubber man bouncing, the little girl started to bounce as well and then they both bounced along through the forest but then the little girl and the man made of rubber came to a very tall tree.

“Do you think you could bounce all the way to the top of that tall tree?”, asked the little girl.

“Yes, I know I can”, said the little Rubber man.

And, leaping up in the air, the rubber man bounced right to the top of the tree.

However, sitting on a branch of the tall tree was a spotted jaguar and when the rubber man bounced up into the tree, he shook the tree so much the jaguar fell off the branch and came crashing down onto the forest floor, bumping his head.

“Row-rr”, growled the Jaguar, “How dear you knock me out of my tree, impudent little girl”, said the Jaguar.

But just then, the rubber man came leaping back down again.

“I’m sorry”, said the little girl, “But it wasn’t me. It was my little friend”.

“Row-rr”, growled the Jaguar, “Then I shall eat him up!”.

And pouncing upon the rubber man the Jaguar bit into him.

However, the rubber man, because he was made of rubber was very chewy, just like a dog’s rubber bone and the Jaguar, angry, spat the rubber man back out again.

“Row-rr, you are far too tough and chewy”, said the Jaguar, “I can’t eat you”.

But then the Jaguar turned to the little girl and said,

“But I can eat you little girl”.

Frightened, the little girl ran through the forest and, seeing her run, the Jaguar chased after her but then , suddenly, the girl came to a mountain that was very tall and far too steep for her to climb.

“Oh no”, she said, “I’m trapped. That Jaguar will eat me for sure”.

But then, suddenly, out of nowhere leapt the little rubber man and, grabbing hold of her, he bounced right to the top of the tall mountain.

“Wow”, said the little girl looking down over the edge of the mountain and seeing the Jaguar far below, “How high you have jumped! That Jaguar looks as tiny as a kitten from up here”.

But then, the little girl thought that she would explore the top of the mountain and, nearby, the girl and the rubber man found a cave in which there was a precious jade carving of a head.

“It’s beautiful”, said the little girl, looking at the Jade head,“I’d like to take it home to my mother and father. Unfortunately, that Jaguar is still at the bottom of the mountain, so how will I get it home?”.

Then, however, the little rubber man had an idea which he whispered into the little girls ear.

And, a minute later, the little girl called down from the mountain to the Jaguar below.

“I’m going to jump down now, Jaguar”, she said, “Could you please catch me when I jump?”.

Hearing this, the Jaguar couldn’t believe his luck.

“What a fool”, he said to himself, licking his lips, “She wants me to catch her. Well, I’ll catch her alright and then I ‘ll eat her”.

And, calling back up to the little girl, the Jaguar said.

“Yes, go ahead, little girl and jump, I’ll catch you”.

Then the Jaguar stood with his mouth wide open, hoping to catch the little girl in it and eat her up.

However, when he did this, the rubber man picked up the carved jade head and dropped it onto the Jaguar and the jade head, landing upon the jaguars spotty head, knocked the big cat totally unconscious.

Then the rubber man, grabbing hold of the little girl, leapt down from the mountain, landing safely beside an unconscious Jaguar and then, picking up the Jade head, he and the little girl ran back to her village where they gave the beautiful jade head to her mother and father.

“Why, it’s really beautiful”, said her mother, smiling as she examined it.

Just then, however, a man dressed in a Jaguar skin turned up at the village, rubbing a bump upon his head.

“Grrr”, he said, “That little girl and her rubber friend knocked me upon the head and stole my jade head. I insist you let me punish her”.

But, seeing the bump upon the man’s head and his Jaguar dress, the Rubber man said,

“That’s no man, little girl. That’s the Jaguar. He must be a Nahual; a shape shifter; don’t trust him”.

But then, angrily, the man turned into a snarling jaguar and he was going to leap upon the little girl when, suddenly, the eyes of the Jade head in her mother’s hands opened and it started to speak,

“I am Itzamná, Lord of the Heavens. First of all shamans; chief of all deities. Run away, Nahual. Before I get angry”.

Then the jade heads eyes lit up bright red and burst into flame and, seeing this, the shape shifting Jaguar got so frightened that he turned tail and ran away as fast as he could.

Now, the mother and the father of the little girl, awed by the talking Jade head were going to kneel before it.

But the Rubber man, laughing said,

“Don’t kneel. It’s not really a god. I just brought it to life and made it speak”.

And to prove it, he made the Jade head sing a little song,

“I am the Rubber man;

you may have heard of me

a little girl, she made me

from the sap of a rubber tree.

I have a pair of rubber legs

and I can bounce so high

and we have such adventures,

that little girl and I”.