Sticky Globs

Location: Pandrup, Denmark

Trudging down the path, battling wind and the discomfort of sand in my shoes, my eyes had turned to radars. They swept and scanned, taking in the curiosities of this unfamiliar world. My shivering fingers grasped beloved Iphone8 in a firm hold, readied thumb raised over the shutter release.

Tall blades of grass sprouted from clumps of sand, something I happened to find quite unnatural. I was used to beaches and deserts, where barren fields of sand sprawled as far as the eye could see. But this was different. Everything here grew from beneath the sand: the grass, the shrubs, and the pretty pink flowers. I lifted my phone and my thumb fell.

I continued on, but all I saw was more of the same; plants growing from sand. It fascinated me at first, but it began to become less interesting by the sun’s passing.

My shoes had become the nesting ground for sharp brown grains, which nipped the soles of my feet with every aching step. I had many thoughts of turning around and returning to the miniature shack in which I stayed. But I couldn’t. Not until I found an animal to add to my wondrous photo vault.

From the corner of my eye, I noticed a large black glob laying in a sticky mess by the edge of the path. Naturally, I thought it could only be one thing; the droppings from the shepherd dog which followed the same trail ahead of me. I kept my distance from the clump, making sure I didn’t add any more unwanted gunk to my shoes. But as I stepped away, I saw another. And another. And another. They were everywhere.

There’s no way one animal could make such a mess, I thought to myself. Either that’s one messy dog, or those sticky globs are something else.

I quickly flicked my eyes around, making sure no one was watching, just in case it really was what I initially thought. I could only imagine how weird it would look to go hiking down a trail and come across some random teenager taking a picture of a dog’s droppings – it wasn’t something I planned on getting caught for.

I held my breath, held out my phone, and leaned down to see what all these sticky globs really were. And as I got closer and closer, I realized that the sticky globs were in fact great big slugs!