A couple weeks ago I posted some idle thoughts on the advantages of being a vampire. Not the least of these was eternal youth. But being the time of year it is I started thinking about what it would be like to take the form of some other un-natural creatures. I think I came up with one I would not want to be – a werewolf.
The way you become a werewolf is similar to becoming a vampire – you get bitten by another werewolf. But the signs of the change are not as quickly apparent. There is no death and no burning in the sunlight, just a constant depression because you know that during the next full moon you may become a killer.
Long ago during my wild and crazy days, I had my share of blackout times. Its scary to wake up once in a while and not know what you did the night before. A werewolf has to deal with that every month during the time of the full moon. Imagine waking up with your clothes torn to shreds and the taste of blood in your mouth and having no idea why.
Wolves in the wild are by nature solitary animals and a werewolf is no different. Even in their human form they have to be careful who they become close to. They can’t let anyone know their secret. And if they find someone they can trust to let in on the monthly change, can you imagine how hard it must be to find someone who will agree to lock you up when you are about to become a wolf and still let you out once you’ve changed back?
While you are in the form of the wolf you have an insatiable carnivorous hunger. All you know is the hunt and the taste of your kill’s blood in your mouth. This of course unsettles the locals who are trying to raise livestock – and children – which you may be hunting. So they form groups and posses to go out and hunt you. If they are able to find you, you attack them and they shoot you. If they’ve done their homework and use silver bullets, you’re dead. Otherwise lead bullets have no effect except stinging pain.
So this time of year, while the ghosts and goblins roam the streets during the Halloween holidays, be careful out there. Make sure you’re not bitten by a stranger. This is the week of the full moon and you might find out the hard way that you’ve been bitten by a werewolf.
If you want to find out the true story of how the werewolf legend came to be, check out The Book of Werewolves by Sabine Baring-Gould.