One girl one dream Essay

      This knew that this wasn’t the end of the man, he would be back, but next time I will hopefully be a bit more prepared. â€Å"Eleza is that you? † Cried a soft voice â€Å"Mum? Mum is that you? † I didn’t think it was possible â€Å"Eleza I knew you would come back† she replied â€Å"I have to go mum sorry, I can’t get close to you because it will rip you apart when I leave again, sorry† I shouted while running away down the street â€Å"No Eleza no! I can’t cope without you† screeched mum That was the last time I ever saw my mum. Gun shots were fired shortly after I had left, and I just assumed that the police heard her and found out where she was hiding. I knew that the police would be after me soon so I searched refuge on the out skirts of the village, fortunately a couple were also on the run from the police so I went into a home with them, it wasn’t an amazing home but at least it provided a roof over my head and food for my empty stomach. â€Å"Why are you running from the police? † I questioned the couple, â€Å"because of our religion, people here do not support our beliefs and say that we don’t belong in this community† they stopped, they were going to say more but they could see that I was too tired to listen and so they rested my head in the cloth and rug bed they had made up for me, I thanked them. I started to shiver as it got later into the night so I moved my bed closer to the raging fire to keep warm. I woke up the next morning still feeling incredibly tired because I didn’t sleep very well. The couple were very kind to me, for breakfast they gave me a cup of milk and also a piece of bread. Once I had finished eating my food I told the couple what my situation was and what my plans are, they took it as quite a surprise but understood completely and even offered to help out. Knowing that they were old enough to earn a living I stayed along side them for many days. Later on that evening we gathered around the beaming fire and chatted for hours and hours, that was until there was a knock at the door, â€Å"shh, Eleza hide quickly† said the couple silently. I tip toed towards the wooden toy chest and climbed in. â€Å"open up! † demanded a strong deep voice, The woman opened the door to the strange dark clothed man. â€Å"on the floor, now! † he shouted again The did as he said, I couldn’t see everything but I could see through a little hole in the side of the chest. Even before the couple could have a chance to speak, the man shot them both in the head. As that bullet pierced into their skull I cringed and couldn’t bare the sight, I wanted to cry but any noise could give me the same shot to the head. The strange dark man left, dragging the 2 bodies behind him. I broke out of the toy chest and went to the bathroom; I splashed water onto my face to revive my self, I knew it wasn’t worth getting worked up about as I already had a mission to complete. But this incident just made me more determined to get back at the mayor. What’s next? – Chapter 11 Screaming with silent rage I crept through the village of murderers. My mind was spinning and I had headaches slicing in and out my skull. I noticed the mayor walking down the street, I followed not too far behind, by the looks of it he was walking towards the forest, I wanted to go see if Oscar was ok but didn’t want to chance getting caught. I gave up on following the mayor because he walked into a building and then just disappeared out of sight. I then focused on getting into the forest to see the construction so far. It had been raining the night before so the way up the hill was wet and slippery, I fell many times, but easily managed to get back up again. When I finally reached the top of the hill I saw that the construction hadn’t progressed much at all. I went around back to see more, â€Å"Eleza.. PST.. Eleza over here† came a whisper from behind. â€Å"hey, how are you here, I saw you had a arrow in your back, you cant be alive! † I stepped back in shock, â€Å"that was a tranquiliser, the guard saw me and assumed I was trying to steal the blueprint, so shot me simple mistake, I’m sorry I scared you like that. † â€Å"are you still willing to help me then? † I wanted to get this over with so I wasn’t going to laze about. â€Å"don’t worry about the building Eleza, since you’ve been gone I have spoken to the mayor and many arguments were fought, but I have managed to convince them to make the building eco friendly. It will cost a lot more money to make but you are the reason why many animals in this forest will be preserved and protected well done! † â€Å"thank-you for doing this for me, how can I repay you for this? † I felt incredibly happy that someone was inspired by me. â€Å"come down to the mayors office with me tonight, I think he wants to talk to you† replied the boy. â€Å"are you mad! I will be killed! † I shouted â€Å"no seriously I can honestly say that you are safe with me, please trust me as I trusted you before† pleaded the boy I felt that if I didn’t go then it would be mean because he had helped me out a great deal and I should help him in return. â€Å"ok then, but if anything should go wrong then may your thoughts be guilty for ever† I accepted to see what the mayor wanted. I went off into the forest to get ready for tonight, I found Oscar beneath a big branch where we once stayed. He followed me down to the lake, I took a swim to clean off so not to get bad impressions with the mayor. The time passed and by the time I had dried off and got back to the construction site it was already time to go. â€Å"come on then we best get a move on† I said while already walking. We reached the mayors present house on time, we knocked on the door and waited for a response. Helping out- chapter 12 â€Å"Enter please† spoke a well mannered butler â€Å"Just stay calm and when the mayor wants to talk then let him† demanded the boy â€Å"Hello Eleza, I have heard many stories of you, I understand that you like to stand up for what you believe in, am I right? † said the mayor in a strong voice â€Å"Yes, you are correct† I answer in the simplest way possible â€Å"I want you to do a favour for me, I will pay for your food and sleeping place, you wonder why, but I really do think that you have the courage we need, do you think you can manage to stand up for what you believe in even if the opposition is bigger?. † I thought for a while before proclaiming my reply, â€Å"I would love to take hold of the responsibility of helping out, but do not understand why you would choose me to do this, I was being chased by your men the other day, how can I know that I can trust you? † I still wasn’t convinced but if what he was saying was true then I would be overwhelmed and hopefully do a good job. â€Å"Ok, I guess I should tell you now, I haven’t been completely straight with you, I will look after the forest here for you, but you must leave to southern Africa to do a job for me, flight is paid for, and you will be helping the green team to help decrease the amount of de forestation, and also in your free time you will be helping the smaller children in the schools but if you do not accept this then your precious forest will be burned to the ground for my house to be bigger! So the choice is yours. † It wasn’t much of a choice so I just did what I had to and agreed to go. â€Å"I will go but Oscar must be able to fly over with me! † â€Å"I’m sorry but it is illegal for wild animals like Oscar to fly over on the plane with you† I knew he was right so I just gave in, but made sure that he is promised to be looked after by the mayor. I looked back and went to talk to my friend, â€Å"I’ve never been to Africa, is this a nice place to be? † â€Å"I haven’t ever been either, but I do know that it is a third world country, with children that need your help† replied my friend. The mayor went out the room and talked to another man about the trip, I was shacking but not because I was scared, just because I was filled with many emotions, I was actually quite excited. Journey and arrival – chapter 13 I set off early the following morning and endured 12 long tiring hours on the flight to northern Africa, then another 9 hours on a train to my destination. When I got off the train my legs were numb and floppy. When I arrived I was directed into a small long building and was told what I should do. The mayor explained that he is only here today then will be flying home tomorrow, and then he introduced me to my mentor. â€Å"Eleza, I hope that your stay here will be pleasurable, my name is Mandisa please come meet our youngest residents in our village. † I was taken into a classroom where little children stared at the teacher, they gave her all their attention, there was no shouting, it was just calm nice place to learn. I didn’t want to disturb them so instead I went into the village centre and saw just how hard it was for them to survive. â€Å"Could I have a cup of water please? † I asked a local The man said nothing, he walked over to a well and scooped out a bucket of water, I went over to him, he handed me the bucket. â€Å"Is this what you drink everyday? † I wondered I looked into the bucket; the water was cloudy with dirt floating on the surface. This wasn’t what I was expecting, I was hoping that the people hadn’t been drinking this for too long, this water isn’t drinkable and could kill if the wrong bits are drank. â€Å"It is the end of the school day now, come with me to see the children† said Mandisa I followed her to the classroom again and met up with the kids, meeting them made me feel important, I felt like I was a vital part of their lives, and that I could make a difference to their lives. â€Å"Hello, my name is Keon, what’s your name? † questioned a young boy â€Å"Eleza, I am here to help you and your class friends out. â€Å"Yay, no-ones ever come to our village before, other than Aitan, your mayor† â€Å"Is your mum going to pick you up from school? † I just wanted to talk to him, I wanted to make friends. â€Å"My mum is gone† Keon fell silent and faced the ground â€Å"she is gone, but my dad is in the fields. I have to go; my older sister has a disease and needs all the support she can get. † Before I could get a chance to comfort him he was gone. I walked down the road and met up with Mandisa. â€Å"Come; come quick, its Keon’s sister! She is in desperate need of help. † I didn’t rely, I just ran with her to his home. There was a huge gathering of people out side of the house; me and Mandisa stepped into the sweltering house mounted of sad people, the mood was unbearable and cries came from the room that Keon’s sister lay. I ran into the room and looked into the eyes of the girl, I could see that she was in a cycle of eternal pain; I knew this was an incurable disease and couldn’t help but feel sorry for the girl, at such a young age, (2 years younger than me and 3 years older than Keon.) I left the house and went to the little mud cottage where I was staying, I sat on the bed and relaxed, I can’t stand emotional moments, it just brings back bad memories that I’d rather not think about. There was a knock at the door, â€Å"Hello, Eleza are you in there? † sobbed a voice from behind the door, I went over to the door to find Keon looking at me then grasped my waist and burst into tears I hugged him for over 10 minutes before he let go and sat next to me on the bed and told me the tragic news about his sister. His father kindly invited me to the funeral then took Keon back home to get some sleep. I was shattered and was shocked by how much happened to me in one day, and was glad when the day came to a close. But I was eager to see what tomorrow had in store for me. African life – chapter 14 â€Å"Eleza, Eleza time to get up† whispered a soft voice in my ear I couldn’t talk because my lips were so dry and crisp they remained sealed, I leapt out of bed. They gave me a towel and a bucket of water to wash my face with. The first job of the day was to cover a simple lesson of spelling; I walked to the classroom with the children and was introduced to them all. I then started off the lesson by asking each individual child what they think their abilities are, this helped me to know what their level of learning is currently. The teachers didn’t have books to teach from, just a teacher that goes by memory. I didn’t get an education so I wasn’t doing anything too complicated; I just went over what I already knew. The school day wasn’t very long because the children got too hot in the classroom, after the class Mandisa met me outside. She told me that I was here to make a difference to the people’s lives and that I should try to make some tasks up for myself to complete. I thought for just a few moments then decided what I was going to do next. Keon showed me around the village and pointed over to the forest, or what remained of it anyway. I told him that I will protest against the men but I couldn’t use force. â€Å"I think I have a plan, what is the cutest creature in your forest? † I questioned â€Å"The baby monkeys are cute, they live high in the trees† Keon replied â€Å"Let’s go then† I shouted to him while running through the forest. Keon knew that there was only a slim chance that my plan would work and so he didn’t get his hopes up. It took a while to spot any wildlife in the forest because the noise of the chainsaws had frightened them half to death, I crept up quietly to one of the babies, the mother was higher in the trees so she didn’t see me coming, Keon gently lifted down the monkey and handed it to me, then we walked for miles and miles to find the campsite of the tree murderers and once there Keon gave a good firm knock on the door and waited for a response. â€Å"Who’s there† came a voice behind them I turned around quickly and addressed them, â€Å"We are begging you please stop cutting down the trees, so many animals die because you have taken away their home and family, here is a monkey that is calling out for your help† I had to make up a sad story about the monkey or it wouldn’t take effect. â€Å"I am just against it as you but we must do this otherwise we are out of jobs and wont be able to afford to survive. † I could see that the man wasn’t the kind to give up easily and so I diverted to the second plan,†you know, we will always have a place for you in the village and even though you have had you arguments with them, I’m sure if you stop cutting the trees down they will be happy to take you in. † if this didn’t work then we were screwed. This is something I will consider, it wont be immediate but you idea will not be discarded, don’t come back, we will move I’m due course. † The turned and walked away into their house, we went back to the village and carefully put the baby monkey back exactly where we found it. I went back to my where I slept the night before and rested there. As I lay I thought about all the changes I could make to this village if I put my mind to it, I wasn’t an adult, but the village treated me as one and made me feel wanted. This was when I knew, my dream has become a reality, I wanted to make a difference to the world and help those in more need than me. For once in my life I feel that I have done my parents proud and just wish that they could be here beside me. Everyday for over a month I got up and helped around the village, and every evening I would visit Keon’s mother and comfort her because the loss of her daughter was still on her mind. I had gone through so many adventures in my life and only in 1 year I had gone half way across the world and have witnessed life and death pass me by, and yet am still at a young age of 14, but my birthday is next week and the village kindly offered to have a little bonfire to celebrate, Keon even offered to sing a traditional African song called Kpanlogo this song had a strong meaning behind it but he wanted to sing it because it had a great tune to it. Free life takes a change – chapter 15 Keon was now a big part of my life and was like a brother to me, his mum was a thoughtful woman and she welcomed me into her family. I took the job of permanently teaching his class and in the process I even taught myself new things and the children told me about the animals and wildlife that surrounds them. That night Mandisa walked up to me with tears building up in her eyes, she told me that the mayor said that I couldn’t stay any longer, he needed help back home. So unfortunately my time in Africa came to an end. I was heartbroken to leave my new family, I felt like someone when I was there and didn’t want to go.