My encounter with a python

I encountered three snakes and one python in my life.

I have had three encounters with snakes and one encounter with a python in my life. The python was the first one I ever saw.

The incident happened when I was a young girl living in a . There was a spring nearby where I used to fetch water every morning. One day, as I was carrying my empty can to the spring, I came face to face with a python. I did not notice it until it was too late. It was lying on the ground, camouflaged by the dry leaves. I heard a crunching sound as it moved its head towards me. I turned around and saw its large, scaly body and its small, beady eyes. It was longer than me and thicker than my arm. It looked at me for a moment, then slid past me without making a sound. It went between my legs and continued on its way to the other side of the spring. I was stunned and scared. I did not know what it was, I just called it a snake. I wanted to run away with my partially filled can, but then I thought that would be foolish. What if someone saw me running away from a harmless creature that was already gone? What if they laughed at me or scolded me for being cowardly? I decided to stay and fill my can before going home.

When I got home, I told my mother what happened. She explained to me that what I saw was a python, not a snake. She said that snakes would have attacked me for blocking their path, but pythons are not as aggressive as snakes. She also told me that pythons are constrictors, which means they squeeze their prey to death instead of biting them with venom. She said I should be careful around them, but not panic if I see one again.

I thanked God that it was a python that crossed my path, not a venomous snake. If it had been a snake, I might have died there, 

I breathed a sigh of relief when I realized that the huge reptile slithering towards me was a python, not a venomous snake. Pythons are non-venomous snakes that use their muscles to squeeze their prey, not their fangs. If it had been a snake like a king cobra, which can inject enough venom to kill an elephant, I would have been doomed. I was alone at the spring, miles away from any help, and no one would have heard me scream. I would have faced a horrible fate of paralysis, suffocation, and cardiac arrest.

Have you ever encountered any of these creatures? Please share your experiences with us in the comments.