Chasing Monkeys

My An Arkie's Faith column from the September 21, 2022, issue of The Polk County Pulse.

As I travel, the landscape seems almost otherworldly. The trees along the road are veiled in wisps of fog, and overhead a crescent moon tries to break through the cirrus clouds. The faint moonlight enhances the ghostly, ethereal scenery of the early morning hours. 

As I drive through what seems like a sublime fairyland, I listen to a book on the stereo in my little S-10 pickup. The story appears predictable as a boy in the Ozarks of northeast Oklahoma reminisces about the summer he turned fourteen. But the story heads into bizarre territory when the boy, Jay Berry, and his hound dog, Rowdy, are out looking for the family’s crazy old milk cow, and Rowdy trees an animal in a large oak tree. 

Jay Berry tells the story, “At first, I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me. I just couldn’t believe what I was seeing. It was a monkey—an honest to goodness monkey.” Although it was hard to believe a story about finding a monkey in northeast Oklahoma, I wasn’t surprised. After all, the title of the book is Summer of the Monkeys.

I first heard about the book Summer of the Monkeys by Wilson Rawls when I read about the Mena School District’s reading program, One District One Book. I thought, “The title is interesting; I should read the book.” According to a Polk County Pulse article, “the idea is that the school district, sponsors, households, and community all read the same book, giving them something in common in addition to promoting reading and literacy.”  

The story is written from the perspective of a 14-year-old boy named Jay Berry. His life is full of adventure, exploring the river bottoms near his family’s farm. In the late 1800s, his family had moved from Missouri to Oklahoma to be near his grandparents. His twin sister, Daisy, has a crippled leg, but the family doesn’t have enough money to pay for the surgery she needs.

From the day Jay Berry discovers monkeys in a nearby river bottom and learns that they have escaped from a traveling circus, which has offered a large reward for their capture, he is obsessed with capturing the monkeys. He aims to claim the reward and use the money to fulfill his dream of owning a pony and a .22 rifle. He attempts to capture them using traps and a net borrowed from his grandfather, but the monkeys outsmart him at every turn. After one incredibly intense encounter, the monkeys attack Jay Berry and Rowdy, and they limp home covered in scratches and bites. Daisy spends several days nursing them back to health.

Jay Berry and his grandpa go to a nearby town to visit the library and see if there is a book there that can help them learn how to catch monkeys. They hatch a plan to catch the monkeys using coconuts, but as they return home, the monkeys steal the coconuts. Jay Berry wonders if he will ever be able to capture the monkeys. 

One night, not long after the monkeys stole his coconuts, Jay Berry was sleeping soundly when an earth-jarring clap of thunder awakened him. As the storm intensified, Jay Berry started worrying about his monkey nemeses. The following day, he told his Mama, “I’m going down in the bottoms and see about the monkeys. They could’ve drowned or blown away in the storm. I’m worried about them.”

His Papa asked, “If you find the monkeys, are you going to try to catch them?” Jay Berry answered, “no, I just want to see if they are all right.”

Jay Berry found the monkeys huddled together in a washout in the riverbank, wet, cold, and almost dead. When the monkeys saw that he was trying to help them, they followed him home. From this point on, the story follows a happy ending path. Jay Berry returns the monkeys to the circus and gets the reward. Instead of buying a pony and a rifle, he uses the reward money to pay for his sister’s surgery. But somehow, in the end, he still ends up with a pony and a rifle.

Although the premise seems a bit silly on the surface, the book has an excellent moral. It is about family and what matters most in this life. The book examines broad themes such as not giving up on your dreams, kindness, and love.

As I thought about the book, my mind kept returning to what I feel is the turning point in the book. Jay Berry had compassion for the monkeys on the night of the terrible storm. Instead of viewing them as enemies he must subdue; he worried about them and had compassion for them. From that point on, everything in his life changed from disappointments to all his wishes coming true. The book wraps everything up just a bit too neatly but points out that compassion and kindness are the best approaches.

In Psalms 112:4 (VOICE), the Bible tells us that “when life is dark, a light will shine for those who live rightly— those who are merciful, compassionate, and strive for justice.” Unfortunately, most Christians are not known for their mercy, compassion, and desire for justice. We shout in the public arena, “Everyone should keep God’s law as I see it.” But Paul tells us, “The entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” Galatians 5:14 (NIV)

In his book Grace for the Moment, Max Lucado offers a pledge that we could all make our own: “Nothing is won by force. I choose to be gentle. If I raise my voice, may it be only in praise. If I clench my fist, may it be only in prayer. If I make a demand, may it be only of myself.”

Gentle Reader, maybe, like Jay Berry, we need to change how we view those we oppose. Instead of viewing them as enemies we need to subdue, we need to consider them with compassion and kindness. As a Christian, kindness can go a long way. It can show others the character of the God we serve. We can show people they are important and created in God’s image through a smile, kind words, and compassion. You may never know the positive impact of your kindness, but “let love and kindness be the motivation behind all that you do.” 1 Corinthians 16:14 (TPT)